


Til the Universe Do Us Part

by inkspottedandbrokenhearted



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Action, Angst, But not exactly, Canon Divergent, Emotional, Fake Dating, Fluff, Love, M/M, Married Klance, Pining, Wedding, a lot of pining, and idiot boys who can't admit their feelings, except they're actually married, fake dating au, klance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-23
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-07-01 10:27:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 35,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15772254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkspottedandbrokenhearted/pseuds/inkspottedandbrokenhearted
Summary: Allura was always saying it was important to learn the cultures of the planets they were visiting. Lance never really cared. That is, until his actions were seen as an unintentional marriage proposal to Keith. And Keith’s actions were seen as an acceptance. Suddenly they were married by the King and their marriage was, well… legit.On that planet anyways.Lance tried to reassure himself with the fact that the marriage couldn’t be upheld anywhere else in the universe. But word travels fast and suddenly the fact that the Leader of Voltron and his right-hand man were married had been whispered in every corner of the universe. And everyone else seemed happy about it. Thrilled, actually.As more people were willing to join the coalition because of this, Lance realized it wouldn’t be as easy to get out of as he expected. And that he would actually have to treat Keith like his… husband.Oh, quiznak.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you guys ever want to hit me up with questions/comments/predictions/requests/etc feel free to find me on Tumblr! @lookingglassheart1207
> 
> I love hearing from you guys and getting to know you so always feel totally free to reach out to me there!

The Galra were everywhere. Their ships filled the sky, casting a long and ominous shadow across the planet Ansognia. The Paladins of Voltron swooped in, their colorful Lions flying gracefully through the air. The Castle of Lions was not far behind. From their vantage point in the air, they could see the Galra soldiers that were on the ground, mixed with the Ansognian warriors. It was a battlefield if they ever saw one, weapons clashing and people falling, destruction riddling what looked like an otherwise beautiful planet.

****

“Watch out for the Ansognians on the surface, they're out fighting alongside us,” Keith spoke into the coms, maneuvering his Lion closer to the surface of the planet to get a look at what was happening. He could feel the familiar thrum of battle inside his chest, spurring him on. There was a protective side to him that had never really surfaced until he’d become a Paladin of Voltron and now it was out in full force, encouraging him to do anything and everything in his power to ensure that no Ansognians lost their life.

****

“Roger,” The rest of the paladins responded in turn through the coms.

****

Everyone went their own way, tackling their own sets of ships. Keith stayed low, trying to provide some cover to the Ansognians on the ground. Black responded quickly and easily to him, gliding above them and drawing the majority of the fire from the Galra fighters. He was able to block the fire, but the ships moved too rapidly in haphazard patterns for him to be able to successfully return fire. He could feel the frustration building inside of him, but knew that covering the soldiers on the ground was most important. He had unwavering faith in his team and was certain that they would, given enough time, be able to take out all the ships without his help. Sure enough, a moment later, a shadow appeared above Black and then Red came soaring in, spinning through the air and taking out the fighters.

****

“I had it covered, Lance,” Keith bit playfully into the mic. He could hear Lance’s laugh, warm and rich in his ear as he spoke.

****

“You’re welcome,” Lance responded. His voice was a level higher with excitement, the way it usually was in the middle of battle. Somehow, despite all of the fights they had been in, Lance still managed to get a thrill out of it. Keith tried to mirror that excitement, to draw on the bond that connected them all as Paladins and pull some of Lance’s emotions to him. Just hearing his exuberant tone was enough to lessen the tension in Keith’s shoulders a little bit. Actually feeling it would give him a second wind that he desperately needed, he thought. Still, even without it, they had gotten out of every fight alive so far, there was no reason to assume this would be different.

****

“Uh, a little help here guys?” Pidge’s voice crackled in his ear. Through the connection that Keith had opened with his team, he could feel a spike of panic coming from Pidge and his heart rate jumped in response.

****

Keith looked to his right to see the Green Lion bobbing and weaving, a whole fleet of Galra ships following behind. He kept his eyes trained on Pidge, steering Black in that direction without any hesitation. He thrust the controls forward, giving everything he had to push them forward, but it didn’t matter. A few moments later, before Keith was even halfway to her, the Yellow and Red Lions were flanking her, their mouth blades out. Keith watched in awe as the two of them wove through the Galra ships, tearing them to shreds. They made it look easy. He smiled to himself as he heard them cheering through the coms.

****

Suddenly Black pitched to the side before spinning and righting again. Keith hadn’t even thought about the maneuvers, he’d just reacted instinctively, connecting himself to Black. Together they spun around and Keith drew his eyes forward, startled, to find a Galra fighter flying at him head on, lazers blasting. He reached for the controls, instinctively guiding Black out of the line of fire. He could feel Black humming under his fingertips, feel the way his energy seeped into his fingers and spread up his arms, connecting them as one being. Black liked the thrill of the fight as much as Lance did, and he could feel the excitement like a second heartbeat in his chest. It was soothing, in a way, to have that presence inside of him.

****

Shots were coming at him from all sides. He could see dust filling the air around him meaning that their shots were making it to the ground, too. He pushed the throttle forward, flipping a switch with his left hand and setting his sights on the closest ship. With a single press of a button, the lasers were firing from Black’s tail. The ships dodged, moving in erratic patterns to try and make it harder for him to target them. Keith grit his teeth, flexing his grip on the controls. That level of protectiveness came back out, and he dropped low to the ground, firing from below.

****

“Guys,” He called out, “They’re closing in on the planet. We need to do something.”

****

“Yeah, that’s what we’ve been trying to do,” Hunk replied, his voice tense. “If you haven’t noticed, there’s a lot— _aah_!”

****

Out of the corner of his eye, Keith could see the Yellow Lion dropping closer to the ground, plagued by Galra ships. He sucked in a deep breath, steering Black over in that direction. Before he got there, Hunk righted himself and he took off in his Lion again, leading the ships away from the surface. Keith shot at them from where he was, taking a few out. But for every one he destroyed, two more seemed to take their place and he had no idea where they were all coming from.

****

“There’s too many of them!” Lance yelled into his mic, voicing Keith’s thoughts. “Everytime I think we’re on top of it, more appear!”

****

“Coran? Any help you can offer us from up there would be appreciated!” Keith called as he clicked a communication channel with the castle open, hoping it didn’t cut off any of his words.

****

He could feel the familiar thrum of adrenaline in his veins. His heart was thundering away and he could feel his pulse beating throughout his entire body. He knew his grip on the controls was strangling, but the pressure in his hands felt reassuring. He closed his eyes for a moment, connecting further with his Lion. Black opened up to him immediately, wrapping around him tightly and sharing his energy.

****

“The main ship is up here,” Coran said and he sounded distressed. “If you can take it out, you should put an end to the fighters coming your way. It’s hitting us pretty hard, though, our shield is almost down. We’ll provide what backup we can, but it’s on you.”

****

As soon as Coran finished talking, the bayard slot popped open to Keith’s right. He could feel what Black was thinking and he smiled to himself as he slammed his bayard into the opening, rotating it so it locked in place. It felt like a release of energy— more specifically, like the completion of a circuit. All of the energy rushed out of him and into Black but, in return, he could feel Black’s energy flowing back into him.  A moment later, the glorious wings appeared on his back and Keith was booking it across the sky, towards the main ship.

****

“Guys, I’m gonna go take out that main ship. Think you can hold the fort down here?” Keith asked, even though he knew the answer. He trusted his team implicitly and was absolutely certain they could and would rise to the challenge. He already had his hands on the throttle, easing it forward as he waited for a response from the others.

****

“I got your back, buddy!” Lance called through the headset, his lion already swooping down to where Keith had been, taking over the responsibility of covering the Ansognians. “Hurry back!”

****

Heeding Lance’s words, Keith gave Black the remaining throttle and they shot up into the sky, spinning to avoid any and all Galra ships that were around them. They broke above the line of the battle and there was the Galra ship, large and glorious in a distinctly ominous way.It wasn’t the first Galra ship Keith had seen and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. Still, he didn’t love the idea of fighting it alone. He’d done that many times before, too, but he preferred to have the others. He reached out to Black instead, taking comfort in the feeling of him in the back of Keith’s mind and the depths of his soul. Black roared in response.

****

He watched through Black’s eyes as the blade materialized in his mouth, the wings still propelling them forward at an unprecedented rate. He and Black were so connected that he barely had to move the controls for Black to respond, swooping around the main Galra ship, dragging his blade across the exterior and tearing it open. Small explosions followed him wherever he went.

****

Through his headset he could hear commotion, could hear the other paladins yelling. He couldn’t make out anything other than the panic in everyone’s voice though, and it scared him. He knew they needed him and he was desperate to get back to them. Just as he liked to always have them around for everything he did, he liked to always be around for everything they did. With a deep breath, Keith pushed himself harder, his grip so tight he felt like his skin was going to tear.

****

“C’mon, we have to finish this quick,” He whispered to the empty cockpit, knowing he didn’t need to say it aloud because Black would hear him either way. He could feel the energy of Black rise up in response, pushing back against him, urging him forward. They finished their sweep of the ship quickly, flying back down to Ansognia just in time to miss the final explosion.

****

As he and Black swooped back towards the planet, immediately falling back into the fray of battle, Keith opened a communication channel. “Okay, the main ship is out, we should— ”

****

Lance cut in, his voice frantic, “Red isn’t responding. I’m going down you guys. I’ll do what I can from the ground but— ” his coms cut out.

****

“Lance?” he called. His throat felt raw. He could hear the panicked edge creeping into his own voice. When Lance didn’t immediately respond, Keith’s heart dropped to his feet. He could feel the terror pumping through his veins as he raced back towards the surface of the planet, desperate to find his Red Paladin. His eyes scanned the planet as he approached. “ _Lance?!_ ”

****

“Keith— ” Pidge tried to say, but he wasn’t listening.

****

He was supposed to be the leader. He was supposed to focus on what the team needed above all else. More than that, though, he was supposed to keep them _safe_. Distantly in the back of his mind he knew that there were three other members of the team for him to worry about, to protect, but he could see Red on the ground, on his side, and everything else left his mind. “I’m going to Lance, you guys handle it from up here. I took out the main ship so there’s no extra fighters coming, just what we have here.”

****

The wings were still in full form on Black’s back and Keith dove the remaining distance to the ground. His eyes were locked on Red, a memory flashing in the back of his mind, spiking his panic further. He remembered when he had piloted Red, diving towards the ground, blindfolded, with Lance flying at his side in Blue. They had been racing then, challenging each other to see who would pull up at the last minute. The memory only made Keith’s heart ache. He knew Lance was strong and resilient, but he wouldn’t feel better until he _saw_ that Lance was fine. He needed to know that they’d have more time to make more ridiculous memories together. Loss was an inevitable part of war, Keith knew, but he certainly never intended to lose any of his friends. Keith scanned the ground as he approached, searching the faces of the Ansognian soldiers for the familiar blue helmet but it wasn’t there. The fear tripled.

****

“Lance,” He whispered hoarsely, his heart feeling as raw as his throat. “Where are you? C’mon, be okay. Be okay, please.”

****

He would give a lot of things to have Lance next to him again, a challenge just hanging on the tip of his tongue, begging Keith to rise to it, to hear Lance laughing over the coms as he made a miraculous shot and took out one of the Galra ships. His heartbeat was pounding so loudly it was almost the only sound he could hear. By now Lance should’ve come to, should’ve reestablished connection, should be visible on the surface of the planet. By now he should at least know that Lance was still alive and the elongated silence was grating on his nerves.There were explosions all around him— Black was taking multiple hits, but he couldn’t stop. He pulled up at the very last moment, remembering when he had scared Lance on his hoverbike with Shiro. His heart thundered as Black’s paws slammed into the ground. He was already out of his seat and diving towards the ground before Black had a chance to straighten up.

****

His feet hit the ground and he took off running, weaving his way through the soldiers, shield up. He could stop and fight later but right now, he needed to be sure his right-hand man was okay. Red was just a few steps away and Keith’s panic spiked through the atmosphere as he got closer. Red was still on his side, mouth slightly open. The soldiers moved as Keith approached and he realized with gratitude that they had surrounded Red in an attempt to protect him until Keith could get there.

****

“Lance?” He began climbing Red’s paws, trying to get a view into the cockpit. He walked tediously along the length of Red’s leg until he was on his face, looking through and into the inside where Lance was slumped over sideways in his chair. He banged loudly against the glass, the sheer force hurting his fist but he barely noticed. “Lance!”

****

He let out a breath of relief when he saw Lance stir in his pilot’s seat. Slowly he sat up, a hand on his head and looked around, blinking. His gaze eventually settled on Keith and he flashed him a thumbs up. Keith could tell that he wasn’t feeling well but he could deal with that later. All that matter was that Lance was awake and responding again.  A moment later, Lance’s voice came through the helmets. “What’d I miss?”

****

“Lance!” Pidge yelled, sounding relieved.

****

“Lance,” Allura was next, “I’m so glad you’re alright.”

****

“Now both of you need to get back in this fight,” Hunk finished.

****

“I’m going to see what I can do from the ground. Can you guys handle the air? It looks like we’ve got a bunch of Sentries down here to take care of.” Keith stayed frozen to his spot for a few more moments as he watched Lance slowly get up and stretch his body. He moved slowly around the cockpit, his movements stiff and staggered. As if he could feel Keith watching him, he turned and waved Keith on, encouraging him to go and do exactly as he’d just said he was going to do.

****

“We’ll do our best up here,” Pidge said after a long moment of a silence. Keith’s question about what took her so long to respond was answered a moment later when a galra cruiser came crashing to the ground and he glanced up to see Green darting away.

****

The other two lions soared overhead as Keith took off, his bayard gripped tightly in his hand. As he ran he could feel it shifting until it formed the blade he knew by heart. He’d gotten so used to his sword by now that it simply felt like an extension of his arm. He reached the Ansognian soldiers quickly, diving straight into the battle. He spun through the crowd, his blade slicing a path in front of him until he was on the front lines. The soldiers fell in behind him, fighting with everything they had. Keith was determined to protect them with everything inside of him, so he swung his blade with a ferocious precision, hitting as many sentries as he could. Unfortunately they were just as outnumbered on the ground as they had been in the air.

****

There were injured Ansognians all around him, laying on the ground and unable to escape the fray. Determined to keep them safe, Keith surged into the crowd of sentries in front of him, drawing their fire. He sprinted through them, hacking away at any that were within his reach. As he continued to run, the sentries followed him and the remaining Ansognians followed them, leading the battle away from those who were hurt and keeping them safe.

****

Keith had come to a stop as he was surrounded by sentries. He raised his blade, prepared to fend off anyone who got close enough to him. The Ansognians were still battling around him but there were still too many sentries left unattended. They closed in around him, swing for and reaching out towards him as they came. He fought who he could but it wasn’t long before he was overwhelmed and thrown back, hitting the ground with a _thud_. A sentry stood over him, its own blade coming down in a quick, precise arc. Keith braced himself, but a shot flew over his head instead, hitting the sentry a moment before its blade had a chance to pierce his shoulder. Keith glanced behind him to see Lance joining the fray, his sniper up to his eye.

****

“Watch yourself!” Lance yelled, his voice echoing across the battlefield instead of sounding right in his ear.

****

Spinning, Keith was just able to climb back to his feet and dodge another blade that was coming his way. The tension in his shoulders seemed to lessen a little, seeing Lance safely back out here and fighting. He felt like he was moving more nimbly, ducking under and jumping over attacks that were thrown his way. The Ansognians had managed to hack their way to the center and were now fighting directly at his side. Keith no longer had a visual on Lance but he could feel him there— could feel a tug on the string that connected them as Paladins of Voltron, indicating that Lance was there. Everything felt more manageable with Lance there.

****

A ship exploded above them, the shards falling towards Ansognia. Keith didn’t manage to dodge in time, caught up in battle with one of the sentries, and was knocked off his feet by one of the falling pieces. He hit the ground hard, his breath flying out of him in a _whoosh_. His head slammed back, smacking into the ground and leaving him slightly dizzy. He had barely hit the ground before the Sentries were closing in on him. Keith fumbled for his bayard, reaching his hand out, but he couldn’t find it.

****

“Keith!” Lance appeared out of nowhere, diving over Keith’s fallen form. It seemed to happen in slow-mo for Keith, the way Lance flew above him just as the blade of one of the Sentries came down. He watched the blade hit Lance, piercing through his armor and then he watched Lance crumple to the ground in front of him.

****

The wind was still knocked out of Keith and he struggled to move, trying to push himself upright and reach for Lance. He thought he was screaming Lance’s name but his ears were ringing too loudly for him to be sure. He reached a hand out for Lance, who was pushing himself up off the ground and turning back to the Sentries. The relief that flooded Keith was only temporary.  Lance had managed to make it to his feet and he took a wide stance, standing protectively between Keith and the Sentries. His bayard was a few feet away on the ground, Keith realized. He wasn’t sure when Lance had lost it but all he knew was that Lance’s was over there and his was nowhere within sight. They were defenseless.

Keith surged to his feet then, every cell in his body screaming that he needed to defend Lance. but it was too late. A blast from the distance hit Lance square in the chest and he collapsed _again_. Furious and panicked, Keith took a protective stance over Lance, refusing to be budged. He still had no idea where his bayard was, but he had his Marmoran blade, like always. He drew it out, unleashing his anger on anyone that got close to him or Lance.

****

“Guys,” Keith deflected a blow before plowing his blade into the chest of the sentry. The sentry fell to the ground and gave him a momentary pause is the battle to update the others. His voice was haggard and he knew it. He could feel the way the words clawed at his throat, not wanting to be said. “Lance is down.”

****

“What?” Allura responded almost immediately. “Is he…?”

****

“I don’t know,” Keith could feel the lump in his throat growing, threatening to cut his voice off completely. He could barely breathe. “ _I don’t know._ ”

****

“Skies are all clear,” Pidge said, her voice more collected than the others, but far from calm. “We’re on our way to you. Just hang in there, Keith.”

****

Keith’s breathing was still uneven and painful, his head was still pounding from its impact with the ground,  but he would not be budged from his spot over Lance. The sentries were closing in on him and Lance again, drawing his full attention. He clashed swords with the closest one, constantly glancing behind him to make sure Lance was still safe. The ground shook briefly as the other Lions landed, and Keith almost felt a moment of relief. Almost, because the Sentry in front of him managed to get the upper hand, taking a step forward and angling his blade against Keith’s in a way that made his wrist ache to keep holding it. He pushed back, ignoring the pain, but it didn’t matter. The blade clattered to the ground a moment before he felt something smash into his head and the world faded out around him.

****

—

****

The world around Keith came back in pieces. The sounds came first— murmuring at the bedside, soft whispers of things he couldn’t understand. Next came little images, snippets of the world around him as he blinked repeatedly to try and get his bearings. The walls in the room were white, reflecting the light and making everything seem too bright. He squinted against it, waiting for his eyes to focus. His head was throbbing and even the slightest movement increased it. The light slowly faded into something tolerable and he reached a hand up and pressed it to the side of his head, hoping it would help stabilize him. He groaned, looking around the room slowly, hoping it didn’t start spinning.

****

“Hey, you’re awake.”

****

Keith looked to his left and found Shiro sitting there in a chair, looking exhausted. The events of the battle were slowly falling into place in his mind and Keith realized that he was likely in some sort of hospital. He wasn’t surprised to find Shiro there, once he realized that. Beyond Shiro was a second bed and in it sat Lance, his shirt off and bandages wrapping his torso tightly. Keith swallowed thickly at the sight.

****

“Is he okay?”

****

Shiro followed his gaze to Lance before looking back gently, “He’s alright. A little banged up, but he’ll be fine.”

****

“He was defending me,” Keith said, the moment flashing in his mind again. Even in his memory, it played in slow motion. He didn’t think he’d ever forget the panic he felt when he saw Lance collapse. He’d seen a lot of things in war but nothing— not one single thing— had terrified him as much as the idea of losing Lance.

****

“I know.”

****

“He saved my life.”

****

“I know,” Shiro said again. His expression was soft, “And you saved his.”

****

For some reason, the urge to explain overwhelmed Keith. It wasn’t like Shiro was judging him— he would never, he was far too kind- -but the urge was still there. There was something in Keith’s heart that he’d only spoken aloud once, to one person and the way Shiro was looking at him made him feel like he knew what it was anyways. “I wasn’t going to just leave him there, you know? I— _we_ need him. _Voltron_ needs him. The universe— ”

****

Shiro held up a hand and Keith halted his words, a strange feeling twisting in his stomach. He looked at Lance again. Though Keith would never say it, he thought Lance was the kindest person he’d ever met. He’d just laid his life on the line without a second thought for Keith and Keith was absolutely certain he would do it for anyone. Still, he had done it for _Keith_ and he’d nearly lost his life over it. It made Keith’s insides ache, realizing the situation they had all ended up in. All of them— Shiro, Pidge, Hunk, Allura, Lance— they were all amazing people and they deserved to be more than a part of a war that they didn’t start. They didn’t deserve to constantly be putting their lives on the line.

****

“How are you feeling?”

****

Surprised, Keith realized for the first time that he had completely forgotten his own injuries as soon as he’d seen Lance. He tried to think back to the battle, but he wasn’t exactly sure what had happened or why he was laid up in bed. He remembered Lance falling, remembered defending him fiercely, but he didn’t remember anything past that. He wasn’t sure what the final blow had been for him, personally. He took a minute to assess himself. His head hurt tremendously, that much he knew, but that was his biggest complaint. He was a little sore here and there, but for the most part he felt okay. “Alright. My head hurts though.”

****

“Yeah, you have a pretty good concussion.” The tension seemed to be melting out of Shiro’s shoulders slightly. Keith vaguely wondered how long they’d been in the hospital— how long Shiro had been sitting at their sides waiting for them to wake up.

****

“What… happened?”

****

The door slid open then and one of the Ansognians walked in. He wore long white robes that just barely kissed the floor. They billowed out behind him as he walked, making him look powerful. “Black Paladin, you’re awake!”

****

“Your highness,” Shiro said, looking surprised. “We weren’t expecting you.”

****

The Ansognian waved a hand in front of him, a casual smile fitting it’s way onto his lips. “I just wanted to check in on our heroes! I am glad to see you are awake!”

****

Keith cleared his throat, hoping that the confusion was not clear on his face. “Thank you for taking care of us,” he said, before hastily adding “Your Highness.”

****

“I won’t stay long,” The man said, looking thoughtfully between Keith and Lance. “I have much to prepare for the Union ceremony tomorrow. But before that,” he fixed his gaze steadily on Keith then. “Life is a precious thing. You only get one. And you were willing to give yours for him.” He gestured to Lance.

****

“Well, yeah.” Keith said. He wasn’t sure what else to say. They were teammates. They were friends. They were… he cut off the thought before it could fully form in his mind. This wasn’t the time for that. Instead he focused on the fact that risking their lives was what people did for each other. It never would have crossed his mind to leave Lance. It never would’ve crossed his mind to leave anyone on the team behind but he _definitely_ could never have left Lance behind.  “Of course I did.”

****

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Shiro’s face twist into an uncomfortable expression and briefly he wondered if he had said something wrong.

****

“And he gave his life for you. His most precious thing, he gave it to you.” There was a strange inflection in the way the man spoke, it was almost wistful. Keith felt those hidden feelings well up in his heart and his chest ached with the raw emotion. He glanced away, trying to keep his face neutral.

****

“Uh, yeah,” Keith wasn’t sure where this was going, but it felt like there was something he wasn’t understanding in the situation. He shrugged, trying to seem casual. “We would do anything for each other.”

****

The Ansognian nodded, “Life is the most precious gift. Love, the second most precious. It warms my heart to see both in abundance in this room.” Alarms immediately started going off in Keith’s mind, and he started to contradict, or to offer and explanation or to change the topic— to do _something_ to get the idea of him, Lance and love out of everyone’s minds, but he never got a chance. The Ansognian turned his attention to Shiro, changing the subject as abruptly as he’d entered the room. “Come,” he said. “They must rest. They need their strength for the ceremony tomorrow.”

****

Shiro shot Keith an apologetic smile, mouthing that he would explain everything later, and then stood up and followed the other man out, leaving Keith’s head pounding and heart racing as he desperately hoped that his secret remained safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated 2/12/19


	2. Chapter 2

At some point, Keith had fallen back asleep. It was a reprieve from the pounding in his head and he had nothing to do besides stare at Lance and agonize over whatever mysterious thing the Union Ceremony was. When he woke up again, Lance was awake and looking at him. There were no lights on in the room, so it was only illuminated by the rays of the sunset streaming through the blinds that covered the window. It made the world seem soft and hazy, as if Keith were viewing it through some sort of dreamy veil.

****

Carefully, Keith propped himself up onto one of his elbows, slowly turning so he could look at Lance. He flinched slightly as the movements sent a sharp jolt of pain through his head. Lance's mouth was twisted down into a frown as he surveyed Keith. Keith felt strangely vulnerable as he sat there silently, breath held, waiting for Lance to say something.

****

Finally, he spoke. Keith wasn’t sure why he was surprised to hear Lance’s voice as strong as ever. He knew it didn’t make sense to think that his voice was as injured as the rest of him and yet, the strength of his voice was a strange juxtaposition that threw Keith off.  “What happened?”

****

It had been the first thing he’d asked when he’d woken up, so he understood why Lance’s mind went there immediately. Especially considering he was still wrapped tightly in bandages. Still, a part of Keith felt slightly deflated and he wasn’t exactly sure why.  “You saved my life.”

****

Lance’s frown deepened as he repositioned himself slightly in his bed and Keith found himself mirroring it. “I obviously didn't do a very good job, you're all bandaged up in the hospital.”

****

Keith smiled wryly as he reached up to touch the tender parts of his head. “Have you seen yourself? You're definitely in worse shape.”

****

Lance looked down at himself and the bandages that were circling his torso. When he looked back up at Keith, his blue eyes were clear, as if the injuries didn’t bother him. It figured Lance would downplay his own troubles. “The others?”

****

“I don't know,” Keith admitted. Asking about the others had been on the long list of questions he’d had for Shiro earlier in the day but the opportunity to ask them had been taken away from him. “But Shiro was in here earlier and didn't say anything, so I'm sure they're fine.”

****

“Shiro was here?” As if noticing the rest of the room for the first time, Lance swept his eyes around before they settled on the empty chair that was situated between their two beds. His brows furrowed as if he were trying to think of something but he didn’t say anything. He simply waited quietly for Keith to respond.

****

“Yeah, along with one of the Ansognians. He looked important and Shiro kept calling him _‘your highness’_.” Keith shrugged casually to indicate that he had no further information to give. He knew it wasn’t a lot and it wasn’t particularly helpful, but it was the best he could do.

****

A smile spread quickly across Lance's face and he ran a hand through his hair. Keith swallowed as he watched Lance’s hair fall back into his eyes, realizing for the first time just how long it had gotten while he was gone with the Blades. He faintly remembered thinking that it had grown when he first returned but now he was just so used to looking at it every day that it just seemed normal.  Of course we’re already being visited by royalty. I expect no less!”

****

Keith scoffed jokingly at Lance's ego. The truth was, he was glad to hear Lance joking like his normal self. The adrenaline from the battle had waned but the fear felt like it had found a permanent spot, nestled in his heart. He needed all the reassurance he could get and this was helping.  “He said something about a union ceremony that's happening tomorrow.”

****

“Union ceremony?” Lance echoed. “Union of what?”

****

The shrug Keith gave in response sent a spike of pain coursing through his body. He reached a hand up to brace it against his shoulder, surprised. “I don’t know,” he adjusted his position as he spoke around ground teeth, hoping that his shoulder was only hurting because it was bearing all of his weight currently. “I assume it’s them joining the coalition.”

****

“You don’t seem to know much today, do you?” Lance replied, but it wasn’t unkind. A ghost of the smile that had been there before was still on his lips. It was soft and Keith felt that haze covering the world again. It felt too good, he knew, sitting here with Lance in this hospital room. He should be stressed, he should be demanding to be released so he can check on the others, on the Lions— so he could go back to saving the universe like he was supposed to.

****

And yet, he was content to lean his head back into his pillow, letting his eyes fall half closed and just look at Lance in this soft, dreamy light. He was content to just be the two of them, for now, recovering together. He was more than content to pretend, for the time he could, that there was no war— nothing waiting for him. It was just him and Lance and a room that felt like it was filled with a little bit of magic.

****

“Why do they need to have a ceremony to join the coalition, though?” Lance had leaned his own head back into his pillow, seeming to feel the same sort of peace Keith did.  Even with his eyes half lidded, Keith could see their piercing blue color from across the room. It cut right through him, the way it always did. “Nobody else had a big fuss when they joined.”

****

“I don’t— ” Keith started to say, letting the word ‘ _know_ ’ die on his lips, lest Lance would make fun of him again for not knowing anything. Still, Lance shot him a grin, aware of how that sentence was going to end.

****

Carefully, Keith turned on his side so he was facing Lance. He bunched the pillows under his head in a way that put as little pressure on it as possible but still supported his neck. His painful shoulder was off the bed and after a moment, he was relatively comfortable. The blankets were draped over him lightly, but he felt snug and warm and at peace with the world. He could feel his eyes sliding shut, but he wasn’t ready to fall back asleep yet.

****

“Hey,” He said, and he could faintly make out the way Lance turned his head to look at him. “Why’d you do it? Why’d you save me?”

****

“Why did you save _me_?” Lance retorted, his voice a soft whisper.

****

Opening his eyes all the way, Keith tried his best to really focus on Lance. As far as Keith had known, Lance was completely unconscious when he’d been defending him.  “How did you know?”

****

Lance was searching his face in a way that made Keith feel even more vulnerable than before. It was true that he and Lance hadn’t interacted too much at the garrison and that he’d hardly known Lance when they joined Voltron, but that was far from true now. Now, Lance was his best friend. His confidant. His right hand man. He’d dedicated more hours than he’d like to admit to learning absolutely everything he could about Lance. He could tell Lance’s every mood by his tone of voice, knew what every one of his gestures meant. And he could easily recognize the look on his face and the way it implied that Lance had something hidden he was hoping to find in Keith.

****

“How else would I be here?” He asked lightly. “The last thing I remember is taking a blaster shot to the chest and now I’m here. That couldn’t have happened if you didn’t save me.”

****

There was a moment of silence between them, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Instead, Lance continued to scrutinize his face as he waited patiently for Keith to say something back. It was terrifying, the sheer number of times in one day Keith’s motives and feelings were being called into question. He was typically great at keeping up his walls and hiding the secrets of his heart, but there were only so many times he could handle going over the same information before he slipped up or cracked.

****

“I couldn’t just leave you,” Keith’s voice was hoarse, feeble. He took a steadying breath, trying again but he couldn’t even get the words out. “I couldn’t— “ He hoped that Lance just thought it was the fatigue from the battle that was stealing his voice, not a multitude of feelings he was constantly trying and failing to deny. He cleared his throat, changing the subject and forcing the words out. “I would never leave you.”

****

“And I would never leave you,” Lance’s response was matter of fact, but there was still a soft edge to it, as if his own voice was getting tripped up on the words. “It’s the same reason.”

****

Keith doubted very strongly that it was exactly the same reason, but he didn’t contradict. Lance probably saved him because he was the leader. Because Lance was a good person. But Keith? He saved Lance because he couldn’t imagine his world without Lance in it. He couldn’t imagine anyone else at his right hand. Losing the war sounded like a better option that losing Lance. He could never say that out loud, of course, and he would never dream of it. But inside, to himself, he could admit that Lance was the single most important thing in his life, even if he wasn’t supposed to be.

****

Still, he liked thinking that maybe, just _maybe_ Lance saved him for the same reason. He liked thinking that Lance liked him for him and not because he was the leader. That Lance saved him because he, too, wanted their lives to forever be tangled together. He let that thought fill him as he fell back asleep.

****

—

****

The Ansognian came back near the end of the day, his formal attire gone. Instead he was dressed in something that resembled Earth clothes and Keith has to keep himself from commenting on how strange it looked. The Ansognians looked relatively like humans, similar to the way Alteans did, but their skin was more of a rosy pink— much like the color of Lance’s cheeks when he blushed. The thought came to his mind so quickly that it startled Keith and he jolted, trying to stop the thought from developing further. The motion jostled his head and he reached up to grab at his throbbing temples as the Ansognian fully entered the room. .

****

“Black Paladin, are you alright?”

****

“Keith,” Lance said gently, his expression bordering on tender as he looked past the Ansognian and at Keith. Keith begged his stomach not to do flips at the look. “His name is Keith.”

****

“Keith,” the Ansognian repeated softly, “are you alright?”

****

“I’m fine.” He replied hastily, lowering his hand from his head as soon as the throbbing subsided to a tolerable level. “Just a headache.”

****

“Of course,” The Ansognian’s expression was open and understanding. “You did come to us with severe head trauma.” He paused before turning to Lance, “And you came to us gravely injured. But both of you should make a full recovery as long as you give your bodies the proper time to heal.”

****

“And the others?” Lance asked, sitting up in bed and allowing the blankets to pool in his lap. “The rest of our team? How are they?”

****

“They’re perfectly fine!” The Ansognian replied, smiling. “It warms my heart so thoroughly to see how much you all care about each other.”

****

His words reminded Keith of what he’d said earlier about how they loved each other. He could feel a flush spilling into his cheeks and turned his head into the pillow in an attempt to hide it. He could feel the weight of the Ansognians stare as he did so and when he glanced up at him, cheeks sufficiently covered by the blanket and the pillow, he was unnerved to see a soft and knowing smile on the man’s lips.

****

“Are you both up to coming somewhere with me? I have something I would like to show you.” The Ansognian looked from Keith to Lance, who had already thrown the sheets off his lap and had one leg dangling off the edge.

****

“Where are we going...uh, your highness?” Lance carefully maneuvered his way to the edge of the bed so both of his legs were hanging off and hsi feet were touching the ground.

****

“I’m so sorry,” The Ansognian gushed as he surveyed Lance. “I have never properly introduced myself or learned your names. I am Antione, King of Ansognia. He is Keith, I have gathered. And you are?”

****

“Lance.”

****

“I would like to thank you, Lance, Keith, for saving our planet. The story of our planet and our culture is one I would like to tell you, if you would come with me, that is.” Antione didn’t talk to them with the demanding presence of a typical King. Instead, he spoke to them as if he were a friend— gently and with a warm smile that made everything seem alright, no matter how bleak it was.

****

Keith pushed his own covers off, relatively confident that he was no longer blushing so furiously, and moved slowly until he was standing at the side of the bed. He had to place a hand on the bed for a moment until the room stopped spinning around him. Once he felt steady, he took a tentative step forward, pleased to find that the room stayed stable. He crossed the room to Lance’s bedside and offered his hand to help haul Lance to his feet.

****

In reality, Lance was able to get up on his own. But Keith had nearly lost him and he was craving the physical contact so that he could have absolute, tangible proof that Lance was here and okay. Lance moved slowly, the cuts on his torso limiting his motion, but he reached up for Keith’s hand all the same and gripped it with as much strength as he ever had. He allowed himself to be pulled to his feet, his other hand finding Keith’s shoulder once he was up to ensure that they were both solid and safe.

****

Antione waited patiently for them to right themselves, fitting them with an unreadable expression the entire time. Once they were up he spared them a genuine smile and a nod before leading their way out of their hospital room. He set a slow pace that allowed them to hobble behind him as he weaved his way through the hallways. They passed other rooms that Keith glanced into and he wasn’t surprised to find all the soldiers that had fought alongside him filling them. They nodded and waved to him and Lance as they passed and Keith was incredibly relieved to see how well they all looked.

****

They reached the doors to the hospital and Antione held them open as Keith and Lance passed through. Ansognia was an absolutely gorgeous planet, Keith realized, outside of the areas that had been destroyed by the battle. In the distance, everything looked like lush rainforests and he could hear water rushing from all sides. The air was slightly damp, but the cool, wet feeling was a relief against his skin. He took a deep breath in, noting how fresh the area smelled. Besides him, Lance was smiling broadly as he took in the scenery.

****

The sun was setting and the light was becoming hazy and soft again, giving Keith that feeling of tranquility he desired. The sunset, unlike on Earth, was purples and greens, but it was still stunning. The lush scenery sort of faded into the soft colors of the sky making the planet seem infinite and endless. He looked around as they walked, noticing the way the colors here seemed richer and more saturated than anywhere else he had ever been. It almost felt like everywhere else he’d ever been had just been a trail version and here on Ansognia he was experiencing life as it was meant to be experienced.

****

“Ansognia is breathtaking,” He commented and noticed Antione smile. “I’ve never seen somewhere so beautiful.”

****

“That is very kind of you to say,” Antione said wistfully. “I have, unfortunately, not been to any other planets, so I have nothing to compare it to. But I’m partial to Ansognia as well.”

****

Lance was falling out of step with the rest of them, his movements slowing down. Keith paused to wait for Lance, only to notice the way he was bracing a hand against his chest. Keith realized for the first time that Lance had left the hospital with his chest bandaged but no shirt and he forced himself to look away. As Lance caught up to him, he slipped his jacket off of his shoulders, leaving himself in only a t shirt, and held it out to Lance who took it and slipped it on with a grateful smile but no words. They continued onwards together and Keith didn’t fail to note that Antione had slowed his pace down even further for them.

****

“Our planet has existed peacefully for millennia,” Antione launched into the story of his people as they approached a narrow path leading into the trees. Keith was incredibly curious to see how this story tied to them and why it was so important that they know it.. “But it took two very powerful beings to set that peace into motion.”

****

They started down the narrow trail, their path becoming more difficult to navigate. On a normal day, Keith would be able to maneuver it with ease. However, his concussion was messing with his senses— especially his vision- -and he found it harder to navigate than he wanted to admit. Lance, behind him, seemed to be having similar issues, though his were undoubtedly due to his injuries.

****

After a few steps, Lance tripped, stumbling forward. Keith jumped into action immediately, capturing Lance’s shoulder and stopping him from smashing face-first into the ground. It took a moment for Lance to stop pinwheeling his arms and to just relax into Keith’s grip, trusting that Keith woud right him safely. Once they regained their balance, Keith grabbed Lance’s wrist and went to sling his arm over his own shoulders.

****

Lance started to pull back, halting the motion. He was staring at Keith with a sort of wide-eyed wonder that suggested he wasn’t against what Keith was doing, just surprised by it. Incredibly surprised. “What are you doing?”

****

“If I don’t do this,” Keith hissed back, tugging on Lance’s arm again, and securing it around his shoulder. “You’re going to fall on your ass and embarrass us in front of royalty.”  Keith meant it playfully, even if it were true. He wasn’t particularly worried about Antione having a bad impression of them, but he was worried about Lance hurting himself again.

****

Lance laughed lightly at Keith’s reply. “You just need to use me as support and don’t want to admit it,” he accused, a cheeky grin splitting his face open, but he relaxed his arm and allowed Keith to bear some of his weight anyways.

****

Keith rolled his eyes as they took off again, “You can say whatever you want, but I’m not the one who just almost wiped out.”

****

Antione had stopped and was waiting for them with a fond smile on his lips. He watched the way they interacted with each other, his smile reaching all the way up to his eyes and making them crinkle at the corners. He didn’t comment on it, but Keith noticed the way his gazed lingered on Lance’s arm around his neck and the way their hands were gripping each other. A strange buzzing feeling began to fill Keith as he realized that Antione was reading very far into every interaction they had, gleaning information that he wasn’t sure he wanted Antione to know.

****

“These two beings gave up everything they had for our planet,” Antione picked his story up where he had left off with no preamble. He turned and continued down the path, his voice carrying so they were still able to hear him as they clumsily tried to make their way behind him. “They fought side-by-side, each willing to die for the other. Life, as I have said, is the most precious gift. And yet, they were willing to throw it aside for each other. To us, our people, there is no bigger honor than to have someone value you like that.”

****

Keith could clearly see the parallel Antione was trying to draw between these greater beings and the two Paladins, he just wasn’t sure why it mattered. Not that their history didn’t matter, because it did. It was just— Keith wasn’t used to going to planets and having them share their history with him. He wasn’t used to learning the backstory to the places he visited. And he definitely wasn’t used to being compared to the most influential beings the planets had ever seen. He tried to think of a polite way to ask why they needed to know this, but opted to stay quiet when he couldn’t come up with a way.

****

Lance, on the other hand, gave it his best shot. “So they remind you of us?”

****

“Did you not just each lay your lives on the lines for each other?” Antione’s gaze was laser focused on them as he asked but it was clear that he already knew the answers.

****

“Well, yeah, we did,” Keith replied, sounding reluctant. It was clear that this— giving their lives for each other— was the defining trait that Antione was fixated on. It was obviously this that had led Antione to take such a liking to them and that was fine. But there was an implication in it too, one Keith couldn’t quite place and he wasn’t sure if agreeing with it was a good or a bad thing.

****

“ _Heck yeah_ , we did.” Lance sounded much more sure of himself. “And we would do it again, right, Keith?”

****

A temple seemed to rise up out of nowhere in front of them and it’s sudden appearance saved Keith from having to respond. The answer was yes, of course— he’d lie his life down on the line for Lance a million times over and everyone knew it. But still, he was glad that he didn’t have to verbalize that. Instead he just focused on their surroundings again, letting the question hang in the air behind them. The temple was not what Keith would have expected if he had been told where they were going. In his mind, temples were old, covered in moss and crumbling at best. At worst, they weren't even upright anymore. But this wasn't anything like that. It was gloriously maintained, and as magnificent as a palace.

****

“You can see, then, why you two remind me of our saviors, Aaron and Artemis.” Antione  left a lingering look on Keith to make it clear that he had noticed Keith’s lack of answer, but he didn’t bring it back up. He pressed on as if Keith had answered because he knew what Keith’s answer would be. And in a way, Keith had said so earlier when he’d talked to Antione on his own. He continued moving forward, clearly entirely unmoved by the appearance of the temple, continuing conversation as normal.

****

Lance and Keith, on the other hand, were stunned into silence. They leaned into each other as they came to a stop, taking in the sight. The temple was made of white marble and decorated with carvings and statues. The tiles on the ground and along the walls were intricately decorated and breathtaking. There was every color imaginable throughout the temple but it wasn’t overwhelming. It was a powerful sight, and yet it seemed to exude the same tranquility of the rest of the planet.

****

“Aaron and Artemis,” Antione said, gesturing to the two statues that flanked the doorway. “They were powerful in their own right, but it was the bond they had with each other that allowed them to conquer anything. Together they were unstoppable. Together they brought peace to the world, just as I believe you two will bring peace to the universe _together_.”

****

They started moving again, Antione leading them into the temple. Their steps were clumsy as they went, but they had managed to fall in sync with each other as they went, making it easier to maneuver.. The inside of the temple was just as spectacular, filled with different depictions of Aaron and Artemis. The pictures seemed to tell a story of the two of them arriving on Ansognia, fighting with and for each other and eventually turning the planet into a place of peace and prosperity. Keith wondered if that was how the universe saw Voltron.

****

Lance pushed off of Keith to get closer to the murals on the wall. Keith let go of him fully but followed him closely out of instinct alone. He looked at the drawings over Lance’s shoulder and paused. The one closest to Lance was one of Aaron and Artemis, on the battlefield, reaching for each other. Their hands were joined in the middle, their eyes locked. It took Keith’s breath away as he looked at it because the emotion painted on their faces was so raw and real. He could _feel_ their love for each other echoed in his own chest, could feel the way it tore at his heart.

****

“Can you imagine if someone painted depictions of us?” Lance murmured, more to Keith than anything else. Keith hummed quietly in response, struggling to tear his eyes off of the painting. “I mean, the impact they must have had…”

****

“Is the same impact you two have had on us.” Antione’s tone was hushed and it fit the atmosphere perfectly. He spoke just loud enough for them to hear him but not loud enough to disturb the tranquility of the temple nor the trance Keith had fallen into.

****

“You mean Voltron,” Lance corrected, almost automatically.

****

“Well, yes,” Antione said, “and, no. All of Voltron helped save us, but you were the two most responsible for saving my people. You were the ones on the ground fighting with them.”

****

Lance glanced over his shoulder at Keith, their eyes meeting. The look on his face was easy for Keith to read. It was a look that suggested that, while they had been on the ground fighting with his army, they hadn’t done a lot of good. Their hospital was still filled to the brim with injured soldiers. Someone had to drag their unconscious bodies back to the hospital, too. Keith shook his head gently at Lance, hoping he understood that they had done everything they could. They had literally laid their lives on the line for the Ansognians, that was about as much as anyone could ever ask of them. A moment passed and Keith could feel Lance reading his train of thought. When he looked away, he looked a little more at ease.

****

“Our entire society is founded upon the bond Aaron and Artemis shared for each other, do you understand that? We try to treat each other with respect and lead peaceful lives. We show our affection by giving our most precious possession to them. Life on Ansognia is good only because we believe in a strong connection to each other, like our saviors did. And now, here you two are, appearing from nowhere, sacrificing yourselves for the other. Your life, your most precious gift— you give it away so freely for each other. You came to us when we were in crisis and reminded us of that on which our society was born: love for each other.” Antione almost looked teary eyed as he spoke, clearly moved beyond words by what he saw in them.

****

Keith could feel the warmth in his cheeks for the millionth time and he hated it. He knew Antione meant the kind of love and bond shared between teammates, which he and Lance _did_ have, but he couldn’t stop his mind from drifting to a different bond . He and Lance had started off as rivals and progressed to begrudging friends, yes, but still they never verbalized anything about that friendship. Even if they both _knew_ they were friends, they never officially addressed the fact that they had progressed to there and he was sure they never would. They had a relationship that was give and take, push and pull, opposites attract and it worked for them. At least, it worked functionally for them. But there was still a part of Keith that longed for more. A part that wasn’t satisfied with how things were, that wanted it to go that final step from friends to— Keith inhaled sharply, squeezing his hands tightly in front of him to force the thought to end.

****

Lance’s own cheeks were tinged a slight pink and Keith was immediately struck by the way the color matched Antione’s skin. He turned his attention elsewhere, looking around the inside of the temple for anything that could hold his attention. His train of thought was clearly derailed and he desperately needed to get it back on track. Unfortunately, the temple was just one large open room with nowhere else to explore. There were enough paintings on the walls that he could spend hours looking at them all, though, so he carefully ventured away from Lance, secretly desperate to put some distance between the two of them.

****

He could feel the weight of Antione’s eyes on his back and it made him uncomfortable. Antione seemed very— very, very, _very_ — observant and Keith was afraid of what, exactly he were noticing now. If it were anything, though, he didn’t say. “That’s why we’re honored to host the ceremony for you tomorrow. We will drop the suits off in your hospital room either this evening or tomorrow morning.”

****

“Suits?” Keith asked.

****

“Of course,” Antione sounded confused, “Do you not wear suits for the ceremony back on Earth?”

****

The mention of Earth sent a twang through Keith’s heart and he refused to look at Lance because he could already picture the expression on his face and knew it would break his heart. He wanted to explain that they didn’t do ceremonies like this on Earth. That, before their recent escapades in Voltron, he had never heard of a coalition at all. But he didn’t want to offend Antione or to downplay what was clearly an important event for them. “We do,” he said instead, “i just didn’t realize you had suits out here, that’s all.”

****

“We have heard of them,” He answered, “But you are right that we don’t typically wear them. Still, we know this is a special occasion and we want to honor as much as your customs as possible since you have already done so much to honor ours.”

****

“That’s very kind of you,” Keith replied with lack of anything better to say.

****

Antione smiled before glancing through the open doorway. “Oh!” He said suddenly, “I’m late for a meeting! I’m so sorry to dash like this. Can you two find your way back on your own? I don’t want to rush you out of here!”

****

“It’s basically just a straight line,” Lance said, his tone bemused.

****

Keith jumped in, clarifying, in case what Lance had said was rude, “We’ll be fine, thank you.”

****

Antione nodded and started to leave, but he paused at the top of the stairs and turned to face them. “I’m so honored you two are sharing this next step with us,” Antione said before parting completely, his voice full of an emotion Keith couldn’t quite place. “Tomorrow, two becomes one.”

****

Antione disappeared just as quickly as the temple appeared before them. Keith was left with his words echoing in his head, a weird feeling twisting in his stomach. Everything Antione had said to them had been straightforward and yet Keith felt like there was some hidden riddle he was meant to decode in all of his words. He tried to replay all of their encounters, to see if he could figure out what he felt like he was missing but nothing was clicking together in his poor, aching brain.

****

“Why does he talk like that?” Lance was leaning against the mural now, most of his weight on one of his shoulders. “That whole ‘two becomes one’ thing? I mean, I’m glad they’re joining the coalition and all, but they’re making this a _really_ big deal.”

****

“Yeah,” Keith agreed, that feeling in his stomach making him uneasy. He considered asking Lance if he also felt like there was some secret message hidden in Antione’s words but he decided against it. They would find out tomorrow and Lance had enough other things to deal with at the moment. “It is kind of weird.”

****

“And we have to dress up for it?”

****

That part Keith was unreasonably excited for. He absolutely hated himself for the way his heart took off inside his chest, thundering away recklessly at the thought of seeing Lance in a suit. But no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t calm his pulse back down. He was used to seeing Lance in uniforms and he’d seen him in baggy jeans and a hoodie enough. But to see Lance in a suit that was cut to fit his body was something Keith though he’d only ever get to dream about seeing and suddenly it was a guarantee in his life. He swallowed, trying to remember exactly what Lance had said so he could respond, hoping it hadn’t been obvious that his mind had been dragged elsewhere.

****

“It will be quick and painless,” Keith crossed the room to stand next to Lance, a hand outstretched. “And we want to stay on their good side, so don’t say anything like that to them, okay?” When Lance shot him an affronted look, clearly offended that Keith would ever think he’d say something like that to their faces, he just smiled wryly and added. “Now c’mon, give me your arm so we can head back.”

****

Lance glowered but gave his arm to Keith anyways, glancing away as Keith draped it over his shoulder and took off back along the path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> updated 2/12/19


	3. Chapter 3

Finally, the next morning, the rest of the team was allowed to see them. Keith woke up to hushed whispers as the others tried to quietly crowd into the room, each with a chair in their hands so they’d be able to sit and wait for the others to wake up. Keith’s concussion felt better, but not perfect, and he woke up with a pounding feeling in his head. With a low groan he braced a hand against his head and looked around, only to see Lance stir and wake too.

****

“Oh, sorry guys, we were trying not to wake you.” Shiro said after he realized that they had both come to. 

****

“Yeah,” Pidge chimed in playfully, “But  _ someone _ couldn’t be quiet,”

****

“Okay, listen, I didn’t  _ mean _ to trip over the chair!” Hunk defended, crossing his arms indignantly over his chest.

****

Lance laughed from his bed, the sound light and filling the room. Keith allowed himself a moment to just close his eyes and enjoy the sound. Pidge and Hunk were quietly bickering between the two of them and for a moment, things felt normal. And then Keith opened his eyes again and looked around and he could just  _ feel _ an invisible sort of tension that was filling the room, wrapping around all of them.

****

“How are you guys feeling?” Allura asked over Pidge and Hunk’s continued bickering.

****

“I feel mostly fine,” Keith replied, a hand still pressed against his temple. “Just the headache, really.”

****

“I’ll be good to go in no time!” Lance answered, but Keith couldn’t help but remember the way he’d been too weak to even walk all the way back last night. He hoped it was true, hoped that Lance would come out of this with no injuries and go back to living his normal life— saving the universe and flirting with every girl he saw. Well, maybe Keith didn’t hope that very last part came true, but he definitely wanted the rest.

****

Keith could see the way everyone was assessing both of them, eyes scanning over their bodies and trying to gauge how they were really feeling and he didn’t like it. He’d felt too transparent in the last few days and he didn’t want the feeling to continue. In an attempt to distract everyone, he asked, “What happened? Did you guys have to come down and save us?”

****

“No,” Hunk leaned forward in his seat, propping his arms over his knees. “We never even got a chance to. We were heading down to you guys but Black beat us there. He came down over you two, taking out the rest of the sentries that were there.”

****

“Yeah and from there, the Ansognians rushed in and carried you both to the hospital. So we just finished off the rest of the galra and followed them here.” Pidge finished for Hunk, reclining back slightly in her chair.

****

It was sort of heartwarming to hear that Black had come to his rescue that way. Red had come to his rescue many times in the past and he’d always appreciated him for it. Considering he’d had such a hard time accepting himself as the new leader of Voltron, it was a comfort to know that Black had never felt that hesitation and that Black still believed fully in him.

****

“They were really strict when you first got here, too.” Shiro chimed in, “They wouldn’t tell us anything about how you were doing or what was wrong.”

****

“Yeah, I thought Shiro was going to punch somebody, honestly.” Hunk laughed.

****

“Really?” Lance sat up a little in bed and Keith didn’t fail to notice the way he winced as he did so, grippnig his ribs.

****

Shiro shrugged, attempting to look casual. “They weren’t going to let any of us in here.”

****

As if on cue, Antione appeared suddenly in the doorway and everyone turned to look at him. He had a stricter expression on his face than Keith had seen yet, but it wasn’t unkind. Briefly Keith wondered if everyone got visited by the King or if he typically delegated these sorts of things to other people. There was no way of knowing for sure, of course. They were the defenders of the universe, after all, if there was anything he was going to make an exception for, it was going to be them.

****

“Paladins,” Antione greeted and his tone was kind but firm, “Our dear friends Lance and Keith here need to be resting so they are ready for the ceremony later.” At that, the unspoken tension between the rest of the team seemed to triple and Keith felt like it might suffocate him. “Plus, we need help finishing setting up and nobody knows the Earth customs better than you guys.”

****

Even though he didn’t say it directly, it was clear that he was indicating everyone needed to leave. The others certainly understood and all clambered out of their seats, filing towards the exit of the room without another word. They waved as they slipped out the door, Antione going last to ensure that they were alone. He caught Keith’s eye before he left, glancing briefly at Lance and sending Keith a smile that was somewhere between knowing and suggestive.

****

* * *

 

****

It hadn’t been long after Antione left that the suits had been delivered. The Ansognians who had brought them in looked thrilled to see both Keith and Lance and didn’t hesitate to express their excitement for the Union ceremony. The more the ceremony was mentioned, the weirder Keith felt. He couldn’t help but think that the ceremony was the cause of the underlying tension and he wondered if there was anything he was missing.

****

Shortly after the suits had been delivered, Antione had been back, just briefly in passing, to tell them that the Union ceremony was beginning soon and they needed to get ready. It was slow going with Keith’s headache and Lance’s bumps and bruises, but they’d managed to slowly switched from their hospital gowns into the suits that had been provided. Keith wasn’t sure how they’d gotten the right measurements but there was no denying that the suits fit them  _ perfectly _ .

****

“Well?” Lance said after he finished buttoning the jacked on his suit. He turned to face Keith.

****

Keith swallowed, taking in the sight of Lance all dressed up.  Even though he’d had nearly a day to prepare for this, he wasn’t ready for how handsome Lance looked in his suit. He wasn’t prepared to see the way the suit framed Lance, hugging his body in all the right places. He wasn’t prepared for the way Lance looked older, either. He no longer looked like the kid from the garrison that had spent years chasing after Keith. Instead he looked like an adult, like someone who was capable of defending the universe— and he absolutely was, Keith knew, but he still wasn’t used to seeing him in this light.

****

His suit was a royal blue and that mixed with his hair made his eyes jump out. Keith was always acutely aware of Lance’s eyes— they were his favorite feature of Lance’s, even if he’d never admit it out loud— and the suit only seemed to amplify that. Lance was looking at him expectantly, and eyebrow raised as he waited for him to say something. Keith wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say in response that didn’t totally blow his secret. He couldn’t tell Lance that he looked stunningly handsome— drop dead gorgeous might describe it better, honestly— even though it was completely true. He couldn’t tell him that he was moments away from drowning in Lance’s brilliant eyes, even though he couldn’t bring himself to look away from them. And he certainly couldn't tell him that suit defined his shape perfectly; so perfectly that Keith couldn’t stop thinking about the way Lance looked like he’d fit wonderfully against Keith, held tightly in his arms, safe from any and all harm.

****

But he had to say something and he knew it. With a deep breath, he forced himself to scan over Lance’s outfit a second time, reminding himself to breath and willing himself to not get swept away in the curves and sharp angles of Lance’s body. It was then that he noticed the similarities. Lance was standing there in his blue suit, white shirt and charcoal grey tie. Whereas Keith was standing opposite him in a charcoal grey suit, white shirt and royal blue tie.

****

“Are we matching?” He asked, looking down at his own outfit. “We are, right?”

****

Lance glanced between the two of them and Keith could practically  _ feel _ his eyes gliding over him, taking in all the shapes of his own outfit. He tried to quell the giddiness that came with it but there was something indescribably thrilling about knowing Lance was really looking at him. “Yeah,” He finally confirmed after a long moment, “We are.”

****

This sent a  _ zing _ up Keith’s spine, but he tried not to show it. Instead he glanced away from Lance, tugging on the ends of his suit jacket and smoothing his hands across his chest, He felt the lingering weight of Lance’s gaze on him but wasn’t willing to look back and see if he was right. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep his cheeks from reddening if he did.

****

“Do you think we’ll have to talk during this?” Lance asked after clearing his throat. The tension between them was still high and Keith wasn’t sure he could put a name to the type of tension it was. “I know this may come as a surprise but I’m not very good with public speaking.”

****

“Why would that come as a surprise?” Keith jabbed.

****

Lance made an affronted noise and some of the tension disappeared from Keith’s shoulders. He couldn’t resist smiling as Lance responded, “Because I’m good at everything?”

****

“Right,” Keith laughed under his breath, “Good at everything. That’s why I had to save your ass.”

****

“Hey—!” Lance cried, crossing his arms.

****

Keith tried to bite back another smile but he knew Lance could still see it.  “Let’s just go get  this over with.”

****

Lance purposely bumped his shoulder as  they exited their hospital room for what was hopefully the last time.  None of their belongings had ever been in the room— he could only assume that the other paladins had taken them back onto their lions— so there was no reason to go back as long as the doctor cleared them to leave. They hadn’t actually seen a doctor yet, but Antione seemed to always be able to tell exactly how they were doing, what they were thinking and even how they were feeling so Keith assumed that he’d be able to discharge them anyways.

****

The ceremony was to be held in the same temple they had visited the night before with Antione.  Keith remembered how to get there— it was a pretty straight line, really— and he was actually looking forward to seeing it again in the daylight. The place had been beautiful the night before and it seemed like the perfect backdrop for what was clearly a very important ceremony. Still, the unknown was a little worrisome and Keith could feel the nerves creeping up on him. He suspected Lance felt the same as  they walked in silence on opposite sides of the road, a weird  silence settling into the air between them.

****

“There you two are!” They were just reaching the path to the temple when Pidge appeared, running up to them. She was dressed in a beautifully simple green dress.  “You took so long to get here that we were about to send out a search party!”

****

“We got here as soon as we could,” Lance huffed.

****

Before Pidge could say anything else, Shiro stepped up next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder to stop whatever comment was no doubt on the tip of her tongue. “How are you guys feeling?” He assessed both of them thoroughly.

****

“You don’t have to ask us every single time you see us, you know.” Keith took a dig at Shiro who shot him a look. When Keith just shrugged, Shiro focused his gaze on Lance, knowing he’d get a better answer there. 

****

Lance glanced at Keith before answering and something about the look in his eyes struck Keith. “Better than we deserve, I think.”

****

“Hey guys!” Hunk waved  as he finally made his way up the path, the rest of the gang close on his heels . “How crazy is this?”  He threw his arms out to the side in a broad gesture and it caused Keith to look around for the first time, noticing that the path was lined with tea lights and flowers. He turned a confused expression on Lance who seemed oblivious.

****

Faintly, Keith could hear music floating towards them from the temple. The music was beautiful but slow.  “Those weren’t there yesterday,” Keith unthinkingly placed a hand on Lance’s shoulder to gain his attention, gesturing towards the flowers. Lance made a noise that was somewhere between a hum of agreement and a distressed sound. 

****

“Oh, aren’t they beautiful?” Allura gushed, looking at the pathway.  She, too, was dressed in an elegant dress. It looked more like a dress that would be found on Earth than an Altean dress and that fact alone really piqued Keith’s concern about the entire situation. “I helped set them up myself.”

****

“Beautiful,” Keith echoed absently. “Why do I have such a strange feeling about this ceremony? Is anyone else feeling it?”

****

“Didn’t Antione explain everything to you yesterday?” Pidge asked, looking confused.  “He told us he took you guys here last night and told you everything.”

****

“Not really,” Lance answered as Keith thought back to their conversation. “Not at all, actually.  I mean, he  _ did _ take us here but  he just gave us some lecture about Aaron and, uh, what was it?”

****

“Artemis,” Keith supplied.

****

“Right, Aaron and Artemis and how they had this bond and that this planet is based on that bond. I think that’s essentially it, right?” He looked to Keith for confirmation. Keith gave a half hearted shrug, thinking that Lance had gotten the gist of it right.

****

The color seemed to have drained from everyone’s faces.

****

“What aren’t you telling us?” Keith asked, his eyes narrowed.  The long look everyone shared with each other made Keith’s stomach plummet to the ground. He couldn’t help thinking that this had something to do with all the knowing glances Antione had been sending him over the past two days and that thought alone made Keith want to turn in the other direction and run.

****

“I really don’t think we should be the ones to tell you,” Allura said after a moment of silence. “Antione was very specific about us  _ not _ telling you anything. That’s why it took us so long to get into your room.”

****

“You can’t just expect us to head into some ceremony that we know nothing about,” Lance reasoned. “You have to tell us.”

****

“I think you should ask Antione,” Allura was looking anywhere but at their faces and Keith’s alarm was steadily increasing. 

****

The others mumbled some sort of agreement and awkwardly started shuffling down the path. All of them except Shiro, who remained rooted in his spot, his eyes locked on the two boys. There was an uncomfortable expression on his face again and Keith could feel a knot forming in his stomach while he waited for Shiro to say something. 

****

Lance was looking back at Keith, with an expression that was asking Keith to make him feel better. Keith would’ve obliged, if he could have, but he didn’t have any good feelings to share. He met Lance’s eyes but all he could do was frown.

****

Finally, Shiro spoke. “It’s a  _ Union  _ ceremony.”

****

“Yeah, we got that,” Lance replied, shooting another conflicted look at Keith. “That doesn’t help.”

****

Shiro scrubbed his hands across his face, his shoulders slumping. “A Union ceremony! For  _ your _ union!”

****

“ _ Our _ union?” Keith repeated, more confused than ever. Lance was looking murderous.  “You mean the union of the coalition and the Ansognians, right?”

****

“You guys are getting married!” Shiro finally bit out in frustration, throwing his hands in the air. “That kind of union!”

****

The sounds that followed next were indistinguishable and not coherent. Lance spluttered, forming multiple half-sentences about how that was absurd, how that was impossible and how, most importantly, that was  _ not happening _ . Keith, for his part, was just trying to wrap his head around what was happening. He was certain he had heard that wrong, he did have a head injury after all.

****

Shiro was looking at them with exasperation. Lance launched into pacing circles— something he did when he was anxious. Keith merely jammed his hands into the pockets of his pants, taking a few steps further away from everyone. He could feel the panic rising in his chest, clawing up his throat and threatening to suffocate him. Marry Lance?  _ Lance?  _ Suddenly all of Antione’s knowing looks made sense and Keith wished he could just shrivel up and disappear. The universe hadn’t actually been kind by sparing his life— not if it was following it up with this cruel joke. 

****

“There’s some sort of mistake here,” Lance finally managed to form a full sentence.  Unfortunately, that full sentence was like a knife straight to Keith’s heart and he almost wished Lance would go back to being incoherent.

****

“I’ll admit that I was surprised that you two agreed to it,” Shiro ran a hand down his face again, “But Antione assured me that he had explained it clearly and you two had agreed.”

****

“He didn’t say anything about a wedding!” Lance threw his hands in the air.

****

“I’m sure he said something about a union, though. It’s not his fault that you didn’t realize what it meant.”  To his credit, Shiro was maintaining a calm demeanor. He talked levelly, but didn’t impose on how either of them were feeling. 

****

“So what? We’re supposed to just  _ get married? _ ” Keith practically spit the words, an icy edge creeping into his voice. It was his defense mechanism, he knew, pushing away all emotion like that.  There was a chance that he would’ve reacted differently if Lance hadn’t seemed so repulsed by the idea from the very beginning. 

****

“Unless you want to go to the  _ King _ and tell him that while you previously accepted his attempt to honor you two, you no longer agree to it.”  Shiro’s tone was flat but his meaning was clear: there was no getting out of this.

****

Lance groaned. Keith considered turning and just walking out on the entire situation. That would get him out of either option. He could do it. He’d just run to Black and take off to the other side of the universe; make up some excuse that he was needed immediately.   But something told him Shiro would drag him back.

****

Shiro was glancing between the two of them. It was very clear to read the tension on both of them, Keith knew, so Shiro attempted to set their minds at ease.  “Look, it’s only here on Ansognia. If you get married here, nobody else has to ever know and we can all pretend it never happened.”

****

“That’s all fine and well except for the part where I  _ marry Mullet,  _ over there.”

****

“Like marrying you is any better!” Keith yelled back, throwing his arms out to the side.

****

“You should be honored!” Lance cried in response.

****

“Me?” Keith thrust a hand in Lance’s direction, “You’re marrying the Leader of Voltron, that’s a greater honor!”

****

“Yeah, well, I’m—” Lance cut himself off, clamping his mouth shut. Keith wasn’t sure if he didn’t have a response of if he had one that he’d deemed too mean to say. Neither option was comforting. 

****

“Look, I can’t make this decision for you.  I think there’s clearly one right decision but still, it’s not mine to make and I know that. ” Shiro interrupted, stepping between the two. “The ceremony is supposed to be starting already so I’ll go ahead and you two figure out what you’re going to do. But decide fast.” With one pointed look at each of them, Shiro turned his back and followed the others down the path to the temple.

****

Lance and Keith were left standing in the street right next to the woods. They were facing away from each other, arms crossed over their chests and stances rigid.  Keith could feel a series of emotions burning through him— shame, anger, hurt. Of course this was far from an ideal situation but Lance’s extreme reaction embodied one of Keith’s biggest fears. It made him remember why he kept his distance from people in the first place. It made him want to continue to keep his distance from Lance but he couldn’t exactly do that.   There was no good answer in this situation and Keith hated it. He was filled with a frustration but most of it was directed at himself for not understanding what had been implied yesterday.

****

“Alright man,” Lance finally broke the silence, “Let’s just get this over with.”

****

Honestly, Keith had thought he had reached his limit for surprises, but he was wrong. He spun around, jaw practically on the floor and looked at Lance. “ _ What? _ ”

****

Another nervous habit of Lance’s was to fidget with his hands. Keith had noticed him doing it a lot in the beginning, but he did it less now. Now he was more confident in himself and in his place in the team and it was harder to make him nervous. Usually Keith found the habit to be endearing. Now, however, it set his own nerves on edge.  He could feel a restless sort of energy underneath his skin, making him jittery and on edge. Watching Lance wring his hands together made that feeling almost unbearable. 

****

Silence fell between them, leaving the music to fill the void. The two of them stood facing each other now but not looking at each other and Keith wasn’t sure if he wanted to punch something or just disappear to the other side of a wormhole. He had spent years of his life crafting the perfect defense to keep people out and it was failing.  He’d spent years of his life trying to take his feelings for Lance and jam them down to the very depths of his heart where nobody would ever—  _ ever _ — see them. And yet somehow, in some way, he’d done something that made his feelings clear to an entire planet and they’d decided to act on that. 

****

Keith was afraid to look at Lance— was afraid that Lance, too, would see his feelings. He was afraid of the disgust that he assumed would be in Lance’s gaze. Lance had already reacted so negatively to the idea. “Don’t do this for me,”  The silence had gone on so long that it had started to become deafening. Keith needed to break it.  He wanted his words to have some sort of venom to them, but they didn’t. They were feeble and painful to speak.

****

“I’m not,” Lance said, finally looking at Keith. His expression was torn, but it wasn’t disgusted like Keith had expected. “I’m doing it because I want to.”

****

“You want to get married.” It wasn’t exactly a question, it was more of a confused statement.

****

“I wouldn’t say I  _ want _ to marry you,” Lance replied, but his tone lacked the usual bite. “I just don’t think we have much of an option.”

****

Lance’s words stung but,  unfortunately, Keith agreed. 

****

“So we do this then? We go get married and we never speak of it again?” Keith asked hesitantly.  The way Lance was looking at him implied that he, mercifully, hadn’t seen through Keith. It implied that, while everyone on this planet seemed to know how Keith felt, Lance didn’t. So they could do this, they could really and truly get married and Keith would move right back into the denial he’d been living in for so long after. His life would find its way back to the balance he’d gotten used to. It wasn’t what he wanted but it was what he knew how to cope with and right now, that was better than anything else.

****

“We  _ never _ speak of it again,” Lance confirmed.

****

* * *

****

Keith wasn’t completely convinced that this entire situation wasn’t a fever dream. That he wouldn’t wake up back in the hospital with the memory of this fading away as he came fully awake.  It wouldn’t be the first time he dreamed of Lance, but it would be the first time he dreamed of marrying him. In the past his dreams have been varied— Lance coming to him in the middle of the night for comfort, Lance laughing at something he said as they sat at the foot of a waterfall on a new planet, Lance pressed between him and the wall, his lips swollen from kissing…

****

Keith was willing to admit to himself— only himself, nobody else— that he had spent a lot of time in the past thinking of Lance and wanting more from Lance. But he’d always assumed that  _ if _ anything ever happened it would— well, it would go in the normal way these sorts of things usually went. They’d go on a date first, get comfortable with this new dynamic first. From there would be their first kiss, then their second and from there they’d inevitably lose count. That’s how he imagined it going. Instead, he somehow managed to miss every single step in between and had jumped straight to marriage. 

****

Keith stood opposite Lance at the altar, wondering what the quiznak had happened in his life to lead him here.  He never, ever,  _ ever  _ would have thought that he’d find himself in this situation. The altar stood between the statues of Artemis and Aaron and the guests were lined up inside the temple. The rest of the Voltron team was there, of course, along with what appeared to be nearly every Ansognian. 

****

Antione stood in between them at the altar. It was clear that they had done their best to make this wedding reminiscent of an Earth wedding. “We are gathered here today, as you all know, to join these two. Here on Ansognia, we offer our most precious possession as a marriage proposal. If they accept the possession, they accept the marriage. In our case they have  _ both _ given each other the most special thing they have to offer— their lives.”

****

It was in that moment that everything finally clicked into place.  Keith thought back to the things Antione had told them yesterday about life being the most precious gift and the way Ansognians showed affection by giving away their most cherished possession. It  _ had _ all been laid out for them if they had cared to look, they just didn’t know that they  _ needed _ to look.  Keith chanced a glance at Lance’s face only to see the same realization dawning across it. 

****

“It was when the Red Paladin here,” He gestured to Lance and all eyes turned to him, “gave his life for his partner that we first saw the love they have for each other. But when the Black Paladin,” all eyes shifted over to Keith and he could feel their weight heavy on his shoulders, “gave his life in return, we saw that this love was the kind of love that conquered all.”

****

Keith studied Lance who, surprisingly, was looking back at him. He looked at the way the blue suit fit around Lance, cutting sharp angles to emphasize his shape. The color reminded Keith of his Paladin armor, which was a shade of blue Keith had always thought suited him. It made Lance look polished, sophisticated and definitely handsome. Keith  swallowed against a dry throat. His pulse had already spiked just due to their circumstances and the awkwardness of it all. But looking at Lance across from him, face flushed while he was dressed to the nines made his heart rate jump even higher. Keith could feel his pulse in his throat as he watched Lance lick at his lips in an attempt to keep a straight, not-panicked expression. 

****

“As a planet that believes in love above all else, it is my great honor to join these two today so that their bond may continue to grow and inspire others.” Antione paused to stare down at the two of them. Keith did his best to hold Antione’s gaze,  to look like this entire thing wasn’t sending him into a complete panic. He tried to smile at Antione, to play the part that had been assigned to him, but everything felt so surreal that he wasn’t sure he could do it. “I have personally seen their connection first hand and I truly believe, these two were made for each other.”

****

It was a beautiful speech, honestly. It was the kind of speech Keith would want at his wedding, which was nice. The only problem was that the wedding itself was unwanted.  At the very least, the wedding was unwanted  _ now _ . In the back corner of Keith’s mind, an idea was starting to form. It was one that he would never let see the light of day but maybe, just maybe, when he was alone, he would indulge himself and entertain the thought.

****

As much as he didn’t want to, Keith had accepted that Antione could see his hidden feelings. There was no lingering doubt in his mind that Antione knew exactly how he felt about Lance. And so, when Antione stood up there saying that he had seen their bond first hand— that he could see the feelings they had for each other, Keith believed him. But that also meant— Keith took a deep breath and tried not to let the thought take over but he couldn’t stop it. That meant that Antione saw some feelings on Lance’s half of this entire situation, too. 

****

“Now, before we go further, I would like to give each of you a chance to speak to the other. To say how you’re feeling.”  The words drew Keith back to the present. He glanced at Antione and then at Lance, realizing exactly what was expected of the suddenly. 

****

The panic was instantaneously back and this time Keith thought he was absolutely going to suffocate from it. He shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his suit pants, balling them into fists. Lance held a surprisingly neutral face, but one glance at his eyes and Keith could see the panic hiding there, as well. 

****

“Red—  _ Lance _ ,” Antione corrected himself, “You may begin.”

****

If there were any higher power in the universe, it would do Keith a service and strike him down with a bolt of lightning.  It would spare him from having to listen to the person he had feelings for make some beautiful, heartfelt speech that he knew they didn’t mean. It wouldn’t force him to have his heart broken because, as much as he wanted to believe his little theory, he knew better. This was Lance, after all. Lance who flirted with everyone. Everyone but Keith.

****

“Well, Keith, my buddy, my man.” Lance  cleared his throat as he  began. Keith could feel the stares of the rest of their gang individually and he knew they had to be eating this up. “We’ve known each other a long time,” Lance continued, his voice surprisingly soft. Keith felt his heart lurch. “And in the beginning, I was always trying to catch up to you, but never could. And then, one day, I did catch up to you. You were the first to treat me like an equal and to believe in me. I truly don’t think I could be where I am today without you.  Walking alongside you in this really weird, twisted life we lead has been the best thing to happen to me. I don’t want to ever know what it’s like to go on without you. I know you always have my back and you’ll always be there for me and I just want you to know that I’m always going to be here for you, too, okay? We— ” he paused, meeting Keith’s gaze across the altar. “We make a good team.”

****

The mood in the room had softened and it was palpable. Keith’s heart was thundering in his chest after listening to Lance speak such kind words. He had never realized just how much it meant to Lance that he believed in him. It wasn’t like he was doing anything extraordinary; Lance had earned that trust and belief.  Lance was competent, kind, selfless… Believing in Lance was as easy as breathing for Keith. Because he saw Lance, who Lance really was and what he had to offer. He knew exactly who Lance was and that made it impossible to do anything other than believe in him. He’d watched Lance grow, watched him get out of crazy situations, watched him put his life on the line for numerous people. Lance was, undoubtedly, the best person in Keith’s life. And Lance was definitely going to get it later about denying their bonding moment.

****

“Keith?” Antione  prompted quietly.

****

The floor was his, but he wasn’t sure what to do with it.  Part of him wanted to throw it all to the wind, taking that leap of faith and just diving in. If there were ever a perfect opportunity to confess his feelings without repercussions, this was it. He could spill every feeling he kept locked in his heart and then later blame it on the wedding and the obligation they had to Antione and the Ansognians. It was the perfect cover.  But the rest of him was scared. Because confessing his feelings to Lance, even under the disguise of the wedding, gave Lance the power to hurt him. It gave Lance the power to reject him, even if he were doing it unknowingly. It gave Lance the kind of power over him that he’d been actively trying to avoid giving anyone ever again. And that scared him.

****

Because if—  _ when _ Lance rejected him, it would fundamentally change their dynamic. It would have to. Because Keith would be hurt and he would pull away. He could see it now— the questioning look in Lance’s eye because he was being shunned for something he didn’t even understand. Keith could already feel the way his heart would ache to reach out to Lance again, and how badly it would hurt to deny himself that. He would lash out, he thought, and end up hurting Lance, too, which is something he never wanted to do. The consequences seemed to obviously outweigh the benefits. And yet, the torturous feeling of keeping such an important secret locked up  was too much to bear any longer. 

****

“Lance, I am terrible at this kind of thing, as I’m sure you know. And yet somehow, whenever I _do_ express myself, you understand. You’re always there for me, meeting me in the middle. You never push for more or expect anything out of me. I push people away, I’m afraid to get close to them. But you? Well, the more I know you, the closer I want to get to you.”  Keith paused. He’d said enough that he could get away with it, but it was just the tip of the iceberg as far as what he wanted to say. Lance was studying him, looking for something in his expression. There was a vulnerability to the way Lance drew his eyebrows together, questioning Keith, and it broke the dam that Keith kept up inside of him. “You’re like sunshine, Lance. Do you realize that? Do you know that my worst days are instantly better when I see you? Do you know that you’re the only person who can calm and stabilize me no matter what? You say you couldn’t be where you are now without me but the truth is, _I_ couldn’t be where I am today without _you_. You were never behind me, Lance. In fact, you’ve always been in front of me— miles ahead, showing me the way. And I’ve just been lucky enough to follow your lead. When everyone looks to me for leadership, I look to you for guidance. And that hasn’t steered us wrong yet.”

****

He surveyed the room after that, too embarrassed to look Lance in the face.  He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to look Lance in the eye again but the weight that was lifted off his shoulders made him feel indescribably better. If he was going down, at least he was doing it in flames. The Ansognians looked incredibly moved by their speeches, some of them covering their mouths or resting a hand over their hearts. The most moved, however, was Coran who was crying uncontrollably into a tissue and being  _ shh’d _ by Allura. Keith was genuinely surprised by the way these strangers seemed so invested in them.  They had only meet a day previously and yet, there was hardly a dry eye in the room. Love declarations tended to have that sort of effect on people but this seemed like a whole new level. 

****

Finally, he took in a breath , steeled himself, and turned to meet Lance’s gaze, surprised to find it so  soft. In fact, if Keith looked close enough, he could swear there were tears in the corner of Lance’s eyes at his words.  Lance reached a hand across the small distance between them and placed it on Keith’s shoulder, his eyes full of some emotion Keith couldn’t recognize.  The weight of his hand on Keith’s shoulder was comforting and familiar. This was Lance’s go to move when he needed to get through to Keith or to make him understand. This was a comfort to Keith because, whenever Lance did this, it meant he was wholeheartedly on Keith’s side and ready to take on the world with him.  Butterflies filled his stomach as the wedding progressed.

****

“I think you all see, as I do, how perfect these two are for each other.” The rest of the Ansognians hummed in agreement.  Keith still had to remind himself to keep breathing, but it had gotten easier with Lance grounding him. He closed his eyes briefly as Antione begane talking again, focusing only on the point of contact between his shoulder and Lance’s hand. 

****

Antione launched into his story of Aaron and Artemis then, even though Keith was confident that everybody in attendance knew it by heart. He explained how they had given their lives for each other and how that, above all else, was the ultimate declaration of love. Keith tried not to think too hard on that point. Keith already knew _why_ he’d thrown his life on the line for Lance. He knew exactly why, just like he knew he’d do it over and over again; as many times as he had to in order to make sure Lance was safe. That wasn’t the part he tried not to think about. What he was trying to avoid was considering why _Lance_ had been so quick to throw his life on the line for Keith and what implications could be drawn from that. He didn’t want to let the train of thought get away from him, afraid of the false hope that would come along with it.

****

Lance stirred across from him, going to pull his hand back from Keith’s shoulder. Keith had nearly forgotten it was there, he was so comfortable with the contact. Without thinking, he reached up and caught Lance’s hand, gripping it in his own and holding it in front of him.   Lance’s eyes widened briefly but it was only a split second before he gripped Keith’s hand in response, the corners of his lips lifting into a satisfied smile as he did so.  Antione’s eyes caught their clasped hands and his smile grew.

****

“Now, I will do my best to get this right but I apologize that I don’t know the Earth customs as well as I would like.” Antione cleared his throat and continued. “Lance, do you take Keith here to be your husband? For better or for worse? Richer or poorer? Sickness and health? Until death do you part?”

****

Lance turned to look at Keith, absently reaching out to grab Keith’s other hand. They stood, staring at each other, hands linked for only a breath before Lance said “I do.”

****

All the air had been sucked out of Keith’s lungs.  The world seemed to shrink around him until all that was left was Lance. Only Lance. Always Lance. He couldn’t see anything other than Lance. But then again, he never really had seen anything but Lance from the beginning. 

****

“Keith,” All the eyes were on him again, but his eyes were only on Lance. It always seemed to be that way, he thought.  No matter the situation, he was always searching for Lance. And part of him was always in tune to Lance— always knew where he was, what he was up to, how he was feeling. It was like he wasn’t complete if he didn’t know everything that was going on with Lance.   “Do you take Lance to be your husband? For better or for worse? Richer or poorer? Sickness and health? Until death do you part?”

****

A pause. A deep breath. No turning back now, he knew. But he didn’t want to. He’d never want to. Going forward meant Lance and more than anything else in the world, he wanted Lance. And even though he knew this was temporary— knew that this moment would never be spoken of again— he was going to live it to the fullest. He was going to enjoy it and commit every moment to memory. Keith exhaled the breath he’d taken in, finally uttering the phrase  “I do.”

****

Lance squeezed his hands tighter in response. Keith looked up at him then, really looked at him, taking a mental picture. He committed to memory the way Lance’s cheeks were flushed, the pink tinge reaching all the way up to the tips of his ears. He noted the way Lance’s eyes still looked watery and it really made his eyes look like the ocean. He etched into his brain the way Lance was still biting at the corner of his lip, even though he was smiling broadly, hair a little tousled from all of the times he’d run his hands through it earlier. Mostly, Keith just wanted to remember how _beautiful_ Lance looked and how happy he felt because he wasn’t sure he’d ever get a moment this perfect again.

****

A murmured passed through the audience as a smile broke out on Antione’s face. “I believe, in the Earth custom, you are now supposed to kiss your husband?”

****

Keith would like to be able to say that he had never thought about kissing Lance, but he couldn’t lie. What he could say was that he never thought his first kiss with Lance would be at their wedding, in front of a whole race of people he didn’t know. He never thought they would make it to a wedding, to be fair. That’s the main reason he had never done anything. He already knew it was going to end in heartbreak so why even waste the time on it?  Again, though, Keith had been presented with the perfect, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and he had already decided that he was just going to jump all in. 

****

Tentatively, Keith leaned forward, stopping about halfway. True to what he had said in his vows, Lance leaned the rest of the distance, meeting him in the middle. They were a hairsbreadth apart for only a moment before Keith plunged in, tilting his head to the right and capturing Lance’s lips. Lance parted his mouth slightly against Keith and it was all he could do to stop himself from losing his mind. Lance’s lips were soft but the way he pressed back into the kiss was firm.  It was somehow everything Keith had always imagined it would be and so much more at the same time. Keith was absolutely certain that’d he’d be able to feel Lance’s lips— and the fireworks that went off inside him at the contact— for the rest of his life.  As they pulled apart to loud applause, Keith couldn’t help but break into a grin.

 

* * *

****

The Ansognians had gone all out in their attempt to mimic a traditional Earth wedding. The field surrounding the temple was packed with beautifully decorated tables and people mingled around the dance floor. The smell of delicious food wafted through the air and there was even a separate table at the start of the field that was clearly set for only Lance and Keith. At this point, Keith was too far gone to even think about how weird this entire thing was. He felt like he’d been lifted straight into a different reality and this was just how his life was now.

****

The rest of the team crowded them as soon as they had been released to the reception. Keith and Lance had stood side by side, hand in hand, at the edge of the dance floor, waiting for any sort of cue for what to do next. Seeing everyone else approach made a little of the weight disappear from his shoulders, reminding him that he and Lance weren’t facing this incredibly weird situation alone.

****

Shiro dropped a hand onto Keith’s shoulder  once the team finally reached them. “I think you guys did the right thing.”

****

Keith’s heart was still hammering in his chest but the butterflies in his stomach had died down some.  Still, Keith felt drunk in a way. Drunk on euphoria, perhaps. Because he’d never speak of this day once it was over but at least now he’d be able to die knowing what Lance’s lips tasted like. He’d go to his grave with the knowledge of how it felt to have Lance slotted perfectly against him, pressing firmly back into him and gripping at him with a sort of fervor that Keith could only match. 

****

“I can’t believe you guys actually kissed,” Pidge was gushing, leaning into Hunk as she laughed.

****

“What else were we supposed to do?” Lance rolled his eyes, “It’s a wedding, Pidge, typically people kiss at weddings.”

****

“I’m not saying you shouldn’t have done it, I’m just saying that I can’t believe this entire thing is really happening. In real life. You and Keith are married.”  It was clear that Pidge was loving the situation and, at the moment, Keith didn’t really mind. 

****

“I can’t believe it either, trust me.” Lance murmured,  shooting Keith a wry grin. Keith shoved him.

****

Lance came back laughing and looped his arm around Keith’s waist, pulling Keith flush to his side.  Lance was warm and firm and felt amazing pressed against him. Keith knew this was only temporary— that the charade needed to continue while they were still on Ansognia but no after— and he was going to enjoy it while he could. Glancing around the reception he noticed all the Ansognians watching them, looking touched, still, by their affection with each other. With the drunken sort of giddiness he was feeling, Keith had long since decided that he was going to milk it for all it was worth tonight. So, h e slid his own arm around Lance and leaned into him. The smile on Pidge’s face was so large, Keith worried it might split her face open.

****

“You know, you two really do make a great team,” Hunk was the one to speak this time. He also had a smile on his face but it was softer, not the shit-eating grin Pidge had. “You’re both at your best when you’re together.”

****

“Hunk…” Lance sounded touched.

****

“He’s right, you know.” Allura reached a hand out and touched one to each of their cheeks. “You two are, in some way, meant to be in each other’s lives. Everyone can see it.”

****

A clinking sound followed her words, as if all of Ansognia had heard and agreed with her.  Keith certainly agreed with her, though he didn’t think he needed to say that out loud. He was fairly certain that his vows had done a pretty good job of showcasing it.  The clinking picked up in volume until it was overwhelming. Keith looked around to see everyone in attendance holding their glasses and tapping them with forks.

****

“I believe,” Pidge said, raising her own glass to join the noise, “They want you to kiss.”

****

“Where are they learning about all of these Earth customs?” Lance asked, but the fervor with which Pidge was clinking her glass seemed to answer that question.

****

Keith turned to Lance, keeping his arm around the other boy and  met Lance’s gaze. “I believe,” he mimicked Pidge, “They want us to kiss.”

****

“They aren’t the only ones,” Lance whispered just loud enough for Keith to hear.

****

A moment later they were kissing again, arms still tangled around each other. Keith could hear the applause that erupted around them but it was distant. He could also hear his own pulse roaring in his ears, and could hear the way it tripled when Lance slipped his hands lower until they were gripping Keith’s hips and pulling them flush together. Every fiber in Keith’s body was screaming for him to thread his fingers into Lance’s hair but there was something dangerous about giving in to his every urge— he knew the emptiness that would come after losing it all again would be too much to bear.

****

Keith allowed himself to slide his hands up, one cradling Lance’s face and the other gripping his shoulder. He allowed himself a moment to really feel Lance— all his curves and edges— before they finally separated. They stayed close together— so close that Keith thought he’d be able to  _ feel _ Lance’s words if he were to speak. But he didn’t.

****

Instead , music started up around them and Antione spoke, his voice controlling the room even from the other side. “I understand it is an Earth custom to eat before doing your first dance. My apologies, but the feast we are preparing for you takes longer to cook than we would like, so I’m hoping you’re willing to do your dance first?”

****

“If they want a show,” Lance murmured quietly and Keith was right, he _could_ feel the words against his lips. “Let’s give them a show.” Then, loudly enough for everyone else to hear, he exclaimed, “Of course we are!”

****

He gripped Keith’s hand and  together they moved onto the dance floor. Keith had suspended his disbelief for the night and was just thrilled that he was getting this opportunity. He could feel the thrum of the music in his veins, could feel a sort of magnetic power pulling him to Lance. That feeling was always there, underneath everything, but the magical air of the wedding seemed to amplify it even more. The music was still slow so Lance slipped his arm tightly around Keith’s waist, pulling their bodies flush against each other  once again. Keith settled his one hand comfortably back onto Lance’s shoulder, allowing his other hand to be held in Lance’s. They looked at each other for a moment and then Keith could feel Lance threading their fingers together and squeezing his hand gently. Keith squeezed Lance’s hand in response.

****

Lance leaned in close, his lips brushing Keith’s ear as he whispered, “Follow my lead.”

****

“I always do,” Keith whispered back, his own lips right next to Lance’s ear. He couldn’t be quite sure, but he thought the words might have sent a shiver down Lance’s spine.

****

They started swaying side to side, Lance’s grip on the small of his back firm, unwavering  and utterly thrilling .  Lance lead flawlessly, his feet knowing exactly where to go. Keith wasn’t particularly good at dancing but he  _ was _ good at things that related to Lance and found following his lead incredibly easy. He could feel Lance’s movements a moment before they happened, allowing him to move with Lance instead of stumbling a few steps behind him.  Slowly the music picked up and so did their movements until they were arcing around the dance floor, perfectly in sync with each other. Periodically during their dance, someone would clink their glass again and the boys would be forced to fit a quick kiss into their routine. 

****

At the very end, as the song slowed and the music began to fade out, there was another round of clinking. Keith, still feeling bold about their situation, stopped their movements and spun, dipping Lance low towards the ground. Lance moved his hand quickly from Keith’s waist to his neck to catch himself. When he realized he wasn’t falling, he threaded a hand into the hair at the base of Keith’s neck and pulled his face down into the kiss the audience was demanding.

****

Their night went on like that, dancing and clinking glasses with some good food mixed in. In under a day, Keith went from never even dreaming he would kiss Lance to having kissed him so many times, he lost count.

****

* * *

 

****

Their last ditch attempt at creating the perfect Earth-style wedding was the honeymoon suite they had reserved for Keith and Lance that night. It was a small room that opened up towards the woods and a creek bubbled by just outside their door. The room only had one bed which, to a newly married couple, shouldn’t be a problem.  They had  shared a bed before on missions when it was absolutely necessary, but those nights were always miserable for Keith. He never could sleep next to Lance. He was always too aware of Lance--every movement he made, exactly how far apart they were from each other, all of it haunted Keith throughout the entire night. He felt like his nerves were livewires and he was nearly electrocuted every time Lance accidentally brushed against him in his sleep.

****

There was the potential that this time would be different. This time, they had kissed and danced and kissed some more. Keith had swept Lance off his feet— literally, of course, but still. Lance, on the other hand, had swept Keith off his feet literally and figuratively. Inside, Keith knew he would love sharing a bed with Lance tonight, would love the little brushes in the middle of the night and feeling Lance pressed to his side. The problem, though, was the morning. When the magical air of the wedding was gone and they were back in their denial, it would inevitably be awkward.

****

“Figures,” Lance said, plopping onto the bed.

****

Keith hovered just inside the doorway, a lot of things plaguing his mind. The least of which, surprisingly, was the bed. “Are we okay?”

****

Lance looked up, surprised. “Yeah? I mean, _ I  _ think so?”

****

“Well, I mean…”

****

“Keith,” Lance scooted to the side so half of the bed was open for him.  Keith accepted the unspoken invite and crossed the room, sitting on the edge of the bed. “We did the right thing. Plus, Kissing you wasn’t that bad.”

****

“ Wasn’t  _ that  _ bad?” Keith jested, leaning back against the pillows on his side of the bed. “You loved it.”

****

Lance laughed and stretched out next to him, their shoulders bumping. The contact sent a spark of electricity down Keith’s arm. “You’ll never hear me admit that out loud.”

****

Silence fell around them but it was uncomfortable. Keith could feel himself coming down from the high of the day, could feel the reality of the situation setting back in. In the morning, it would be like none of this ever happened. He wouldn’t get to kiss Lance anymore, wouldn’t get to feel their bodies pressed together. It was a loss that Keith knew would hurt— it would hurt  _ terribly _ — but he knew it had to happen. This had been a day out of his wildest dream and he would cherish it forever.

****

“Did you mean it?” Keith  broke the silence with a somber voice , the main question that had been burning at him slipping out. “What you said in your vows?”

****

A pause. Then, “Yeah.”

****

The butterflies from the wedding were back in his stomach and he could feel them in his throat. It felt like there was a sort of tingly sensation spreading down his limbs. “You know I’m not doing anything extraordinary by believing in you, right?”

****

Lance looked at him then, his blue eyes still brilliantly bright against his suit. “What do you mean?” 

****

“You are amazing, Lance. You’re kind and selfless and very capable. I believe in you because you deserve it. You’re my right hand man because you’ve proven that you can handle the responsibility. You’ve earned my trust and respect Lance. I’m not just handing it over to you.” If these were the last moments they had together to be vulnerable like this, Keith was going to take advantage of them. In the morning he’d pretend he never said any of this. But he hoped that Lance would tuck it away in his heart and remember it because every word was the truth. 

****

“So you meant what you said?”  There was a certain tone in Lance’s voice that sounded like hope. 

****

Keith swallowed, “Yeah.” He said, meeting Lance’s gaze and hoping Lance could see how honest he was being. “Every word.”

****

“Good,” Lance said and the corners of his lips tilted up into a smile. “Because we’re married now.  Can you believe that?”

****

“We’re married,” He repeated , his own smile tugging at the corner of his lips. . “And,” Lance  flipped onto his side so he could see Keith better, settling one of his hands into the space between them . “You remember our bonding moment!”

****

A small, bashful smile  took over Lance’s face as he glanced away. “Yeah, I do.”

****

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Keith asked. He tried to keep the venom out of his voice, tried not to show how hurt he’d been that Lance had denied it. Instead he wanted it to be calm and not accusatory so Lance would actually answer.

****

“I—” Lance took a deep breath and glanced back over at Keith again, “I didn’t know what to do with the feelings that came with it,”

****

“And do you know what to do with them now?” It was a genuine question and it opened the door for a potentially great conversation between the two of them.

****

“Yeah,” Lance said after a moment, “This.”

****

He lifted his hand from the space between them and reached over to thread it into Keith’s hair, pulling Keith’s head gently forward and meeting him in the middle in a kiss. Although Keith had spent nearly half of the day lip locked with Lance, kissing in a bed was an entirely different experience. It was significantly more intimate, somehow. Keith let out a shaky breath against Lance’s lips before sliding his entire body forward, pressing them together. They continued to kiss, the buzz filling Keith’s mind.

****

It took him a moment to register that Lance had pulled away but when he did, he realized that Lance was tugging on his suit jacket. “We need to change” was all he said as he continued to push the jacket off Keith’s shoulders.

****

Keith propped himself up on one elbow to allow the jacket to be slipped off of him. Once it was discarded, he dropped back down and captured Lance’s lips again, brushing his fingers under Lance’s jacket and tugging his shirt out of the waistline of his pants. He took the opportunity to slip his fingers under the shirt, feeling the soft skin of Lance’s abdomen and lower back, relishing in the way Lance had to pause their kiss to take a breath.

****

Keith wanted so badly to go further. He wanted to unbutton each button, kissing the skin underneath. He wanted to push the material off Lance’s shoulders, replacing it with his own body. He wanted so much but he knew this wasn’t the time. So instead he just gripped Lance’s hips, pressing his thumbs gently into the sensitive skin just inside the hip bone and allowing Lance to tug his head back and expose his neck. He allowed himself to enjoy the feeling of Lance’s lips on his skin and fingers in his hair but he didn’t press it further than that.

****

After a few more kisses, Lance returned to his mouth, capturing his lips again before murmuring, “We really do need to change and go to bed.”

****

“Yeah,” Keith agreed, even though the words wanted to get stuck in his throat. “I was trying to but you’ve been distracting me.”

****

Lance laughed, rolling away, “You were not trying to!”

****

“Oh really?” Keith sat up, running his fingers through his hair and wishing they were Lance’s again. “Then how come I no longer have a jacket on? Clearly I was heading the right direction.”

****

“You’re an idiot,” Lance slid his own jacket off of his shoulders, setting it gently on a chair that sat next to their bed.

****

Keith watched the way Lance moved, “Yeah, and you’re married to me.”

****

Lance groaned, unbuttoning his shirt and sliding it off. “Don’t remind me.”

****

Keith threw his own shirt across the room, pegging Lance with it. He finished switching into sweats and a t shirt before sliding under the sheets and settling into bed. Lance changed too, taking the time to hang up their suits properly before he slipped into the bed too. They didn’t say much for a long while, both just trying to settle down after the events of a weird day.

****

Then, when Keith felt like he was on the verge of sleep, he flipped over and leaned towards Lance, whispering “Good night” before pressing one more gentle kiss to Lance’s lips.

****

As he settled back into his spot, he felt Lance shifting until he was pressed to Keith’s side, head resting on his chest. And for the first time, Keith found he was able to sleep perfectly with Lance at his side and allowed himself to drift to sleep with the weight of Lance’s head on his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated 3/3/19


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and I have been fighting for like four days now, so I hope you guys enjoy it! I've got a lot planned for you in the upcoming chapters!

They had been cleared the leave the day after the wedding and everyone seemed to be bursting with excitement to go. Not only did they have a long laundry list of things to do, but the events of the previous few days were bizarre at best and they were all seeking some semblance of normalcy.

 

“Well,” Hunk piped up as soon as they had exited the atmosphere of Ansognia, “You two aren't married anymore.”

 

“They are so!” Pidge shot back. “That's like saying they wouldn't be married if they visited China, but on a bigger scale.”

 

“Yeah, a universal scale.” Hunk replied, but the smile was easy to hear in both of their voices. 

 

They were sitting on the bridge in the Castle of Lions, all scattered across the room. Everyone seemed to be smiling or laughing with Pidge and Hunk-- good naturedly, of course. Everyone, that is, except Keith who had been remarkably quiet all day. Besides a gentle ‘thank you’ to Antoine, Lance was fairly confident that Keith hadn't spoken a single word. Now his lips were downturned in a frown and he refused to look up from his lap. 

 

“ _ Ha-ha _ ” Lance jumped in, a seed of worry planting itself in his gut at the look on Keith's face. “Tease all you want, but you know we had no choice.”

 

“Oh, we know.” Pidge said sincerely, but the grin was still there. “But it doesn't change the fact that you are actually married.”

 

Keith stood up then, his movements rigid and expression uneasy. He headed towards the door silently, eyes still downcast. 

 

“Oh did the honeymoon not go so well?” Hunk glanced at Pidge, clearly trying to stifle a laugh. 

 

Lance shot him a mean look. “Stop, it's not funny.” 

 

Keith was halfway across the room, not showing any signs of slowing or changing his mind. Pidge met Lance's glare head on. “Sorry, lover boy, it looks like you're getting a divorce.”

 

Shiro cut in just as Keith was disappearing through the doors. “That's enough. This isn't a joke and you shouldn't treat it as one.”

 

Hunk and Pidge clammed up immediately and Shiro’s scolding tone. They murmured halfhearted apologies to Lance who wasn’t listening. He was staring at the closed doors, thinking about Keith’s retreating back. He was usually on board with the team joking around, even at his expense. So why was today any different?

 

Lance stood up from his spot to follow his husband-- _ god _ , that was weird--but he was stopped by Shiro. “Just give him some space.”

 

“He’s clearly not okay,” Lance replied tersely. 

 

Shiro shook his head and mumbled something about Keith liking to be alone when he was upset. That was true of the Keith that had joined Voltron months ago, but the Keith now wasn’t so closed off and lonesome. Lance opened his mouth to say so but Coran cut in, explaining that they were making a pit stop.

 

Apparently they were headed back to that space mall. Hunk made some comment about how poorly that went the time before, and Pidge was quick to protest because she had gotten some great things out of that experience. Lance wasn’t listening to them bicker, though, he was just staring worriedly at the door.

 

\---.---.---.---.---.---.---.

 

The space mall was as chaotic as Lance remembered it from their first visit. People were bustling everywhere, walking quickly past them, bumping shoulders in their hurry to get to wherever they were going. At first the hustle and bustle calmed Lance’s nerves. It was such a familiar thing, to be lost in a crowd like this, that there was no room for bad feelings. Lance’s worries about Keith seemed to slip away as they walked side-by-side through the mall.

 

“We should go back to that Earth store,” Lance suggested, glancing at Pidge. 

 

“You're right! He might have more games in stock!”

 

“Or another Kaltenecker!” Hunk chimed in. “Although I had plans to go visit a friend at the food court.”

 

Everyone glanced at him, surprised. 

 

“I won't get chained up this time, I swear!” Hunk was quick to amend and everybody laughed. 

 

It was only the four of them. Allura and Coran had stayed on the Castle, working on some repairs. Pidge had tried explaining what they were working on but Lance didn’t understand and also just didn’t care. Shiro was off to get whatever they had come to the mall for and the rest of them were free to just wander on their own. They were in no immediate time crunch this time, so Lance was just planning on ambling around and stopping in a store or two. 

 

As they continued to walk, Lance got an odd feeling. He kept gazing around, feeling like people were looking away just as  _ he _ looked at  _ them _ . Every step they took felt like it was being trailed by multiple pairs of eyes and the uneasy feeling he’d had earlier was settling back in his stomach.

 

“Do you guys feel like everyone is looking at us?” Lance tried to glance around casually but still, nobody would meet his eyes.

 

He felt Keith stiffen next to him but it was Pidge who responded, “I feel it, too.”

 

“They probably just recognize us. You know, we are the saviors of the universe after all!” Lance said, trying to explain away the weird feeling in his gut. “I mean, everyone has heard of Voltron! They’re probably star struck to just see us here so casually!”

 

“I don’t know,” Pidge said, scanning the crowd. “I don’t think that’s it.”

 

“Of course it is!” Lance said, even though he didn’t think that was it either. “They’re seeing their idols just walking around casually! It must be an amazing experience!”

 

People around them were definitely staring now. They were no longer looking away when Lance met their gazes head on. Some of them leaned towards each other, whispering behind their hands, their eyes trailing the movements of the team. Lance swallowed thickly, knowing full well that this wasn’t just because they were team Voltron.

 

They all came to a stop then. Lance was trying to settle his nerves but it wasn’t working. The way Keith seemed frozen next to him only brought back his worry from earlier which compounded with the weird feeling he had now. He sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

 

“I think,” Hunk said, turning in a full, non discrete circle, “They’re looking at you.” He gestured towards Lance.

 

“Me?”

 

“Both of you,” He amended, adding Keith into his gesture.

 

He knew that the wedding was flashing through everyone’s minds, but that couldn’t be it. It was a bizarre two days of their lives, but it was behind them and it was their little secret. “I’m sure it’s nothing,” he said instead, dispelling the thought from his mind and taking off again. The others fell in step around him, silent. “They just know that Keith is the leader of Voltron, so they’re looking at him.”

 

“Then why are they looking at you, too?” Hunk nudged Lance good naturedly with his elbow.

 

“Because I am the right hand!”

 

“I’m a leg!” Hunk cried, “And they’re not looking at me!”

 

Lance laughed, despite the way his nerves felt raw. “I’m the right hand of the  _ team _ , the second in command.”

 

“Eh,” Pidge hedged, laughing to herself. “Maybe on a good day.”

 

“ _ Hey! _ ” 

 

A few moments later, they passed the food court and Hunk waved, heading off on his own. He laughed as he went, ignoring the way Lance was ruffling Pidge’s hair despite her complaints. 

 

She swatted his hand away, shoving him so he wasn’t close enough to do it again. “You coming back to the Earth store with me?” 

 

“Nah,” He tried to sound casual, considering it had originally been his idea to go. “I think I’m just gonna wander.”

 

Pidge looked at him for one long second, clearly recognizing that he was bailing on his own idea, before shrugging and heading her own way, leaving him with just Keith. In truth, he did want to go back to the Earth store but he needed to know if Hunk was right. If the crowd was really interested in Voltron, surely some of them would follow Hunk and Pidge. And if the crowd didn’t decrease at all, he would know that everyone  _ was _ staring at him. Or worse, him  _ and _ Keith. 

 

Keith  _ still _ hadn’t spoken, but he walked besides Lance anyways, his posture remaining tight. Lance wanted to strike up idle conversation with him--partially to decrease his jittery nerves and partially because his concern was growing with every passing moment Keith remained silent---but he kept thinking of Shiro's words earlier. Lance may be Keith's husband but there was no doubt that Shiro knew him better. They had been in each other's lives for years whereas Lance had been thrown into Keith's lap, much to Keith's own displeasure it was seeming. 

 

Lost in this troubling thought, Lance didn't notice when someone approached them, stopping Keith in his tracks. Lance wandered a few steps further ahead before realizing the spot beside him was empty. He paused, turning to see Keith talking to someone. A small gathering of people had stopped nearby, clearly paying attention to what was going on with Keith but not daring to venture closer themselves. They glanced up at Lance who looked away quickly.

 

Lance forced his eyes back on Keith, trying to figure out what was happening. Keith’s expression was one of forced pleasantries and Lance's insides froze over when Keith's gaze traveled over to him and he said “Babe, come back here for a second.”

 

_ Babe. _

 

Lance swallowed, trying to not acknowledge the strange feelings swirling in his stomach. He walked the few steps back until he was next to Keith, forcing his own pleasant voice. “What's up?”

 

The woman standing across from them beamed at Lance. “I just wanted to congratulate both of you!”

 

“Congratulate us?”

 

Keith gripped Lance's elbow in a way that might look fond from the outside. But the strength with which he was squeezing was much more panicked than fond. “On our wedding.” 

 

“ _ Our wedding, _ ” Lance repeated back, understanding why Keith seemed so tense. “Of course, thank you!” 

 

The woman looked concerned, glancing between the two of them. “Should I not have-?” 

 

“No, no it's not that!” Lance back pedaled, trying to stop his mind from reeling and just control the situation at hand.” It was just a small ceremony, and it only happened yesterday. We didn't realize word had spread already! But of course we are very grateful for your congratulations!”

 

“Oh,” She looked relieved, placing a hand on Lance's forearm. “The entire universe knows! Antione told some of the neighboring planets and then word just spread. How amazing! The saviors of the universe finding love? It's truly the most inspiring thing I've ever heard!” 

 

Lance wasn't really sure what to say, honestly. He had always heard that news travels fast but this was a new level of fast. It hadn't even been a full day since the wedding and already the word had gotten out. Lance figured it would eventually, even though everyone insisted that it didn't have to, but he thought they'd have a few months, at least, to figure out how to handle it. 

 

“Honestly,” She was still gushing, her other hand now on Keith's forearm too. “Word of Voltron really started a spark through the universe. But this? This is igniting a flame!” 

 

The small collection of people that Lance had seen in the distance moved so they were now standing around them while she spoke. More people, men and women alike, noticed the crowd and came to join, too, all nodding their heads at her words. Lance felt a little dizzy. As she stopped talking, those around them murmured in agreement, adding in their own congratulations and thoughts. 

 

“Everyone knows the tale of Aaron and Artemis!” A gentleman from the crowd piped up. Everyone agreed. Lance tries to fight the frown that is threatening to form on his lips. Everyone but those from Earth know it, apparently, because he certainly hadn't heard it before. “And to think, we have that same spirit in our new saviors.”

 

“You are all too kind,” Keith says, suddenly sounding the epitome of smooth confidence. Lance, startled, turns to look at him. There’s a smile on Keith’s face that the others are eating up but Lance can see straight through. “We really appreciate that.” His arm slipped from Lance’s elbow to his opposite hip, pulling Lance flush to his side. “We just hope we can live up to your expectations.”

 

The crowd around them erupted with a series of different things and Lance was unable to distinguish most of what they were saying. It sounded generally positive, but he couldn’t be sure. Suddenly someone appeared in front of them, phone out, snapping a selfie with the boys in the background. Others followed suit quickly. Lance and Keith stood there, Lance making different faces and gestures in the background of each photo. Keith did his best to maintain a genuine smile, but that was about it.

 

When the last person approached them, positioning themself in front of the boys, someone from the crowd yelled “Kiss!”

 

“Will you?” She turned to look at them, doe-eyed. “That would be so amazing.”

 

Keith’s eyes immediately snapped to Lance. The group of people around them seemed to be holding a collective breath, waiting for their response. “Of course we will!” Lance cried before grabbing Keith by the back of the head and pulling him into a fierce kiss.

 

Applause surrounded them as they pulled apart and the girl in front of them thanked them profusely for giving her such a great picture. Keith looked at Lance alarmed and slightly irritated before disconnecting from him entirely and muttering something to the crowd before stalking off towards the entrance to the mall. 

 

“Is he okay?”

 

“Oh he’s fine. He’s probably just a little flustered.” Lance replied with a wink and a smile. The crowd laughed knowingly.  The truth, though, was that he had no idea why Keith walked out. He had no idea what was running through Keith’s head and it made him frustrated. “I should probably go after him, though. You know, as good husbands do.”

 

He tossed another thank you over his shoulder as he headed after Keith, his heart thundering in his chest. He couldn’t quite explain why Keith’s mood worried him so much. It wasn’t uncommon for Keith to be cool or distant, it was  essentially his  baseline. And yet for some reason, the fact that he seemed so bothered was eating away at Lance, making him feel like his insides were raw.

 

It wasn’t until Lance was outside the mall that he finally found Keith. He was leaning against the wall off to the side, hands shoved deep in his pockets and eyes staring vacantly ahead. Lance approached slowly. He knew Keith could hear and recognize his footsteps, but he didn’t make any movements to acknowledge Lance.

 

“Hey man.” Lance hedged, stopping next to Keith. When Keith didn’t say anything in response, Lance sighed and leaned against the building, too. “What’s going on with you?”

 

“Nothing,” Keith deadpanned. Lance had expected his answer to be cold or hostile. The calmness of it set his nerves further on edge.

 

“Keith…”

 

“I’m fine!”

 

“You’re clearly not!” Lance pushed off the wall and went to stand in front of Keith, forcing him to meet his gaze. “You haven’t been fine all day. And that, in there? They may buy that act but I know better.  _ Tell me what’s wrong! _ ”

 

Keith met Lance’s gaze fiercely and unflinchingly. His gaze was steady, but it was also full of a lot of emotions. “I’m  _ fine _ .”

 

“Fine,” Lance threw his hands in the air before crossing them over his chest. “Just go back on everything you said last night.”

 

“What are you talking about?”

 

“I believe your exact words were:’ _ The more I know you, the closer I want to get to you’ _ .” Keith flinched, finally looking away from Lance’s gaze. His response sent a sharp pain through Lance’s chest, even though he couldn’t exactly explain why. Taking a deep breath, he tried again, gentler this time. “Talk to me, I’m here for you.”

 

“No,” Keith said, and the harsh tone Lance had been expecting all along finally surfaced. “ _ No _ . This doesn’t mean anything to you, you don’t care about this. You can’t be there for me when you can’t even imagine how I’m feeling.”

 

Without thinking, Lance slammed his hands into the wall, one on either side of Keith’s head. They were practically nose to nose but Lance didn’t care. His concern and frustration were overpowering him. “So tell me,” He said quietly into the space between them.

 

“No.”

 

“But-!”

 

“Look,” Keith stiffened his spine, holding his chin a little higher in some sort of determination as he spoke. He appeared to be fighting internally about something but Lance didn’t know what. “I know what I said and I meant it, okay? But I have spent my  _ whole life  _ pushing people away. That’s not going to change overnight.”

 

A moment passed before Lance lowered his head so his forehead was resting against Keith’s. He couldn’t quite explain the emotions swirling around inside of him. He had felt this way in the past--always around Keith--and yet he still couldn’t quite assign words to it. It was a certain level of fondness and exasperation, mixed with concern… he sighed. Eventually he would figure it out.

 

“Fine,” He breathed so quietly that Keith wouldn’t be able to hear it if they weren’t literally touching. “But I’m here, okay? And I’m not leaving. So we  _ will _ talk about this, but we’ll do it when you’re ready.”

 

Keith reached a hand up and brushed it briefly against Lance’s cheek, sending a shiver down his spine. He pressed closer. “Fine,” Keith agreed, just as quietly.

 

\---.---.---.---.---.---.---.

 

Keith’s mood hadn’t improved during the rest of the day, but he was at least speaking occasionally which was a huge improvement. Lance worried a little less after talking to Keith and knowing that eventually he would get an answer. He wanted one now, but he understood that sometimes you needed time to form your thoughts and feelings before you could share them with someone else, so he was willing to wait.

 

The rest of their day had been relatively uneventful. A few more people stopped them to offer congratulations--some even gave them gifts--and Pidge and Hunk teased them relentlessly. Things weren’t completely ideal but Lance was able to laugh at their jokes and feel a little more at ease than he had for the rest of the day.

 

Finally, they made it back on the ship. Lance was ready to scarf down some food goo and hit the sack, but his plans were derailed the moment they stepped on the ship to find a few people from the mall lined up talking to Allura.

 

“Oh! You’re back!” Allura waved to them. “These lovely people are here to join to coalition!”

 

“That’s really great!” Shiro said, heading over to meet the new people.

 

The woman who had been the very first to approach them in the mall was there and she was smiling at both of them. “Yes, their love is very inspiring. A lot of us who were afraid to stand up before have been so moved by their marriage that we want to join now. I’m sure you’ll have a lot more people join if they get a chance to meet you and see your love first hand.”

 

Lance felt his heart drop down to his feet. Once glance at Keith suggested that he was feeling similarly.

 

“Yes, I think so, too,” Allura said, deliberately not looking at either of them. “We have plans to go out and meet as many people as we can for that very reason!”

 

Lance sighed, placing a hand on Keith’s shoulder. Keith met his gaze and Lance quietly whispered, “This just got a lot more complicated.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been a long time since I updated this, I'm sorry. I appreciate everyone sticking with me and not making me feel bad for taking forever! 
> 
> I was struggling for awhile on where in the canon timeline I wanted to set this fic. I've finally decided that it is near the end of s6 and before s7. Obviously it's going to diverge greatly from the canon timeline now, but everything before (things that happened in seasons 1-5) still exist in this world and will be referenced. Hopefully now that I figured that out, it'll be easier for me to write!

The next few days had been a whirlwind of meeting people and gushing to them, repeatedly, about Keith. On some occasions, what Lance had to say about Keith came easy for him. He could talk for days— even though he’d never admit it— on how brave and strong Keith was. Keith had left for the Blades of Marmora without a second thought which was something Lance, despite being hurt by it, admired. He thought it was an excellent example of how Keith was willing to do whatever it took. There was also a lot for him to say on what a brilliant leader Keith was and how much he believed in him. Shiro had been a great leader of Voltron, but Keith was the leader Lance really looked up to. He could be hotheaded sometimes, definitely, but he knew everyone’s strengths and how to use them. Plus, he was always one step ahead. Those were the easy things for him to talk about.

 

But when people started asking more intimate questions about their relationship, well, that’s when things started to get uncomfortable. He had lost count of how many times he’d been asked what it was like while Keith was gone. He still hadn’t figured out a solid answer to the question of when he had first realized his feelings for Keith, because there wasn’t an answer.

 

“Oh dear boy,” One of the women crowding Lance reached a hand out and grabbed his arm. They had stayed at the space mall for three extra days because people had been so eager to see and meet all of them first hand. Allura had essentially just left the castle doors open so people could wander on and off at their own will. “Where is your husband?”

 

It was a good question. Lance hadn’t seen Keith in a few hours. The more people were interested in them, the more irritated he seemed to get. Lance understood to some extent because Keith was never that outgoing or comfortable around large groups of people, but he was still _polite_ and a decent enough human to put a good face on for guests.

 

“I’m guessing he’s training,” Lance said. When the woman raised an eyebrow at him, he added. “He doesn’t like taking days off. Always needs to be prepared, you know? That’s what makes him a good leader.”

 

Another woman piped up, “You don’t want to train with him?”

 

“What, and leave you ladies alone?” The words slipped out automatically as Lance flashed them a smile. It was hard sometimes to remember that he was married and this kind of behavior wasn’t allowed. If he had known it would end up like this, with practically everyone in the universe knowing about their marriage, he wouldn’t have agreed to the wedding. It was supposed to be a small thing that they could leave in the past and pretend never existed. And somehow it had turned into something that was constantly being thrown back in his face.

 

Everything in his life seemed to be spiraling out of control, Lance thought bitterly. He was never prepared for what the universe was throwing at him next and it was exhausting. First he had become a fighter pilot because Keith had dropped out. Then he had become a paladin, along with Keith and the others. After that he had sailed through the universe fighting evil and making a name for himself, again with Keith and the others. Next, Keith left and Lance felt more alone than he had ever felt in his entire life. And finally Keith was back and they were married and somehow their sham of a relationship became the basis for hope in the entirety of the universe.

 

Every time something crazy happened in his life— big or small, good or bad— it was in some way related to Keith. Lance tried not to think about that fact too often, but it always crept in anyways in the late hours of the night when he was staring at the ceiling.

 

Luckily, the woman around him couldn’t follow his train of thought and laughed as if he had been joking a moment before. Lance was able to let out a shaky breath. The second woman smiled at him. “Opposites attract, just like Artemis and Aaron.”

 

“Oh I just can’t believe Artemis and Aaron are back in spirit,” Another woman jumped in, her voice bordering on dreamy.

 

The woman gripping his forearm smiled, “How does it feel? To be the heroes we all have worshipped for generations?”

 

“Uh,” Lance used his free arm to scrub the back of his head, “Well, to be honest, it’s kind of strange.” A gasp followed his words and he rushed to clarify. “We’re totally honored that you think so highly of us, don’t get me wrong, but back on Earth we’ve never heard of Artemis or Aaron. So our first time hearing about them was being compared to them. And then to have everyone see us as something we’ve only known about for a few days is just… strange. Flattering, but definitely strange.”

 

A murmur spread around him as more people approached and joined the group encircling him. Lance felt like he had spent nearly the entirety of the last three days like this— surrounded by people wanting to know every detail of his life. It was exhausting, to say the least. A few people in the past days had even lingered so late discussing details with Allura and Shiro that Lance and Keith had been forced to go into the same bedroom to keep up the facade. Two of the nights, Keith snuck out once the coast was clear to sleep in his room, but one of the nights they had accidentally fallen asleep leaning against each other, waiting for the coast to be clear.

 

Lance wouldn’t say that he had ever been a Keith expert, but even with his limited knowledge of the other man, he could easily tell that something was wrong. Keith pulled away from him at every given opportunity, barely managing to keep up their act for the guests. His responses to Lance were short and his attitude was through the roof. Even when they were alone in Lance’s room, ears pressed to the door waiting for their opportunity, Keith wouldn’t open up to him. They had been making decent progress before their wedding, too. If Lance hadn’t been so worried, he would be annoyed.

 

He tried not to think about his worry or the way it twisted his gut into knots, but he couldn’t help it. Lance had tried to broach the subject more than once but Keith would just turn his head away and cross his arms over his chest, successfully cutting Lance off. If Lance continued pressing, Keith stopped responding to him all together. Lance had tried to just have light hearted conversations with Keith while they waited for the coast to clear, but even that was a struggle the longer they were together.

 

“I always knew that their story didn’t reach every corner of the universe, but you are the first I’ve met to have not heard it.” The voice of one of the women around Lance drew him back to the present. “How interesting that the embodiments of Artemis and Aaron would be the ones to have never heard the story.”

 

He shook his head before lifting a hand to brush some hair out of his eyes. “Oh.” He said, because he didn’t know what else to say. “That is interesting.”

 

“I think,” She continued, smiling at him. “That just shows how genuine the connection is. To be the reincarnation of something you’ve never heard of is so pure. There’s no way you could be faking it, you know?”

 

Before anything else could be said, Shiro was calling his name from the doorway. A thread of excitement wound through his chest and the prospect of finally getting a break. Lance bid the group of people farewell as politely as he could and crossed the room to Shiro. As he approached, Shiro motioned with a nod for him to go through the door so he did, not saying anything until it slid shut behind them.

 

“What’s up?” He asked.

 

Shiro looked worn and ragged, like he hadn’t been sleeping. The fact that people had been on the ship almost constantly probably meant that he _hadn’t_ been sleeping. Lance frowned as he spoke. “Have you talked to Keith?”

 

“No,” Lance couldn’t keep the undertone of bitterness out of his voice. “You told me to leave him be so I’ve left him alone.” It wasn’t entirely true, but he figured it counted since he hadn’t gotten anything out of Keith.

 

A beat of silence passed where Shiro looked more exasperated than anything else but Lance didn’t back down. Keith had stopped eating, didn’t seem to be sleeping either— he was like a damn ghost wandering the halls. Lance had approached Shiro for advice, simply wanting the best way to broach the subject and Shiro had encouraged him to let Keith work it out on his own. Of course Lance still _tried_ to talk to him, but that had certainly gone nowhere.

 

“I stand by what I said,” Shiro said firmly, “He typically deals with things on his own, in his own time. But now _I_ would like to talk to him. Do you know where he is?”

 

Lance crossed his arms. “Nope.”

 

“Will you help me look?” There was a barely contained edge to Shiro’s voice. He knew Shiro was tired and Keith’s attitude was weighing on the entire team and here he was, giving Shiro his own attitude. He knew that he had no right to take it out on Shiro— it was _Keith_ that wouldn’t talk to him, after all— but he couldn’t deny the sting that came with the idea of Keith opening up to Shiro but not Lance. Plus, Keith wasn’t around to receive Lance’s annoyance.

 

With a resigned sigh, Lance agreed and turned on his heel, heading straight towards the training room. If there were anywhere he were likely to find Keith, that’s where it would be. His thoughts drifted back to Keith as he walked, the knot forming in his stomach again. In the past everyone had turned to him to go and console Keith. It had been _his_ job to talk Keith down from the edge. He didn’t want to brag, but he was typically the only person that could ever get through to Keith and control his impulses. And suddenly, here they were, married. They were supposed to be closer than ever and, instead, Keith was shoving him as far away as humanly possible. It was irritating because he had just expressed a desire to be close to Lance and then entirely backtracked. But, honestly, that was Keith.

 

“Lance? Hello, Lance? Earth to Lance!”

 

Lance stopped suddenly, glancing to his left. Pidge was standing there with her hand in the air between them as if she had been waving it in front of his face to gain his attention. She probably had been, but he was too absorbed in his thoughts to notice. He blinked a few times at her, the trailing ends of his thoughts dispersing.

 

“Oh, hey, Pidge.” He sounded surprised, even to his own ears. He cleared his throat. “What’s up?”

 

“You were spacing out pretty hard. What’s on your mind?” She asked, adjusting her stance so that her hands were settled comfortably on her hips.

 

A sigh passed his lips as he responded, “Keith.”

 

A smug smile sprang to Pidge’s lips. “Marriage problems?”

 

Lance knew she was just teasing but he couldn’t help the way it hit his last nerve. For days he had been wandering around worried sick about Keith and everyone had been downplaying it or brushing it off. He felt like the boy was wearing away before their very eyes and nobody but him cared about it.

 

“This is serious, Pidge.” The edge to his voice was sharp and he knew his words cut. He almost hoped it hurt. “He hasn’t been eating or sleeping. He won’t talk to me. He’s like a goddamn zombie wandering these halls, clearly upset about something and you’re going to brush it off like that? Maybe you don’t care but _I_ sure do.” Lance started to storm away angrily, but paused, one more thought poised on his tongue. “He would care if it were you.”

 

Pidge looked entirely taken aback by the outburst and he knew she should be. It wasn’t like him to snap at anyone, ever, but this was grating on his last nerve. First Keith shut him out, then Shiro tried to take his place and now Pidge was making light of a situation that was anything but light. He felt like he was the only one who cared and that bothered him because Keith would care if it were any of them. Keith would do anything for any one of them and here they all were, pretending he wasn’t acting completely bizarre and out of character.

 

“He’s on the bridge.” Pidge said after a long, tense moment. Lance stalked off, passing her again, barely catching as she said, “I do care, but I’m sure he’s fine.”

 

“What about this is fine?!” He asked, rounding on her.

 

She stood tall against him, her gaze strong. “He’s an adult, Lance. If he says he can handle it on his own, he can handle it on his own. It’s not like he’s going to die because he had a bad couple of days.”

 

“Okay, fine. Next time you have a bad day, I’ll leave you to yourself so that way you suffer alone. Because the cure to a bad mood is to be left alone with it, right? He’s clearly _not_ okay, Pidge, and it’s more than just a bad mood.” Lance could feel the grip he had on his annoyance slipping and he knew that he needed to get out of there before he really snapped. Pidge didn’t deserve his anger either and he was sure of that, but it was becoming harder and harder to stop himself from unleashing it anyways. It had been sitting uncomfortably in the pit of his stomach for three days and he just wasn’t able to deal with it anymore.

 

“Just,” She deflated, letting her arms drop to her sides. “Let Shiro talk to him, okay?”

 

“I’m not stopping Shiro from talking to him. But I’m going to talk to him, too.” He started to walk away and Pidge reached for his wrist. Lance yanked it out of her grasp, “And don’t try to stop me.” He growled as he stalked down the hallway.

 

The bridge was just a few turns away from where he had been and Lance got there quickly. The doors slid open and immediately he saw Keith standing there, looking exhausted and staring at one of the holographic maps. Lance could tell immediately that he wasn’t actually _seeing_ anything he was looking at. He looked like he was a few moments away from just collapsing.

 

Lance stepped into the room, letting the door close behind him. He could see Keith stand a little more alertly at the sound of the door, but he didn’t turn to face Lance as he approached. Slowly he came to a stop on the other side of the map, looking at Keith through the glowing stars. The illumination from the map made it easy for Lance to see the dark circles under Keith’s eyes.

 

“Hey man,” he said softly. Keith finally raised his eyes to meet Lance’s through the map but he didn’t say anything. “I, uh—” He swallowed. He hadn’t really bothered to plan what he was going to say. All he knew was that worry had been eating away at him for days, insisting he find Keith and talk to him. “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

 

“I’m fine,” Keith replied almost instantaneously, his voice rough and raw. “Just tired.”

 

“Yeah, I can see that.” Lance took a few steps around the edge of the map, weaving through the stars and planets even though he didn’t need to. “I know you haven’t been sleeping.” Keith kept his eyes fixed where Lance had been before. “What’s been bothering you? And don’t say nothing.”

 

Lance stopped at Keith’s side, his heart thundering in his chest. This was the fourth time he had tried to talk to Keith, each time taking a different approach. All the previous times Keith had shut him down on the spot, not even entertaining the idea of having this conversation. This time, at least, he could see expressions warring to take control of Keith’s face. He could see Keith considering how to respond. They were so close and all Lance wanted to do was reach out and touch him. He wanted to feel Keith underneath his hands to reassure himself that he was still here because it had felt like he was slipping away for days.

 

“I’m fine,” Keith repeated, glancing down at his feet.

 

“Keith—”

 

“I said I’m fine, okay? Stop butting in where you’re not wanted.” Keith rounded on him, thrusting and accusing finger into Lance’s chest. “I know I said that I want to be close to you but if that means you’re going to be pushy like this, I take it back.”

 

“Pushy?” The flash of anger Lance had felt towards Shiro and Pidge surged back, three times stronger. “I’ve let you sit in silence for _days_ ! I’ve let you ignore me every time I’ve asked and not tried to get you to answer. That is not _pushy_ ! We literally fell asleep against each other the other day and I _still_ didn’t press any further!”

 

“Then why are you asking now?” Keith nearly growled the words at Lance, his finger still firm against his chest. “If you know I’m not going to answer and you’re not going to force an answer, why even ask? How many times are you going to ask me until you just give up?”

 

Lance reached up and batted Keith’s hand away, meeting his gaze head on. “I’m going to keep asking until you finally answer. I’m worried about you! So sue me, okay? I’m your quiznaking husband now, like it or not, and I’m worried about you!” He took a shaky breath and dropped his voice slightly, aiming for a gentler tone. “I know something is wrong and I just want to be there for you. I— I care about you, okay?”

 

“Well I didn’t ask you to worry about me.” Keith returned his arm to his side, his hand balling into a fist. Lance stared at it.

 

“No” he said, “You didn’t. But that’s not how it works. You don’t _ask_ someone to worry about you. So stop being so stubborn and tell me what’s wrong!” When Keith didn’t answer, Lance took another half step forward. “You wanted to see pushy? _This_ is pushy. Talk to me, Keith. Let me in. _Let me help you_.”

 

Lance raised his eyes to look at Keith and they stared at each other for the length of two breaths. Lance counted as he was trying to level his heart rate out to remain calm. After those breaths, Keith turned on his heel and stalked towards the door with no explanation. Lance could feel the anger inside him spike again. Where did Keith get off, blowing him off like that?

 

“Is that how it’s going to be, then? You’re just going to _run away_? Again?” Lance yelled after Keith’s retreating back.

 

Keith halted, the tension in his shoulders visible. “I’m going to my room.”

 

“You’re running away, literally and emotionally. I can’t— I can’t believe you! You can’t run away from everything, you know! You have to man up and face your issues eventually!” Keith turned around to look at him then. “You’re too afraid to face your problems so you just run. You’ve done it enough times now for me to safely say it’s a habit.” An expression of hurt flashed across Keith’s eyes and immediately Lance was backtracking. “Keith, no, I—”

 

“Save it,” Keith said, turning his back again. “I’m just going to _run away_ to my room. Don’t bother following me.”

 

As Keith walked out the door, Lance was left feeling empty, frustrated, and guilty.

 

\---.---.---.---.---.---.---.

 

Keith could feel a sort of raw desperation clawing its way up his throat as he marched towards the bay where the lions were kept. He had told Lance that he was going to his room, but he couldn’t bare to just sit around in his room, thinking about the fight they just had. He needed to get out. He had felt that way for a few days, but had done his best to stay. Still, he had barely been able to stand the presence of other people. They had been suffocating him with their proximity, piling on question after question until he felt like he was drowning both in their expectations and his own feelings.

 

It was true that they hadn't been married for long and everyone knew that, but they all seemed to think there was a long standing relationship before the wedding. Of course they thought that. Because that's how normal relationships went. Normally you date someone for a long time before you're married. But this wasn't normal. This was the guy who declared himself to be Keith's rival, challenged him at every given opportunity and pushed Keith away as often as he pulled him in.

 

This was _Lance_. And nothing with Lance was normal.

 

Keith could go on and on to the visitors about how frustrating Lance could be and how he always knew exactly what button to push. He could talk for hours on Lance's cocky attitude and irritating pick up lines. But he could also talk for hours on how selfless Lance was and how he didn't doubt for even a second that Lance would lay his life down on the line for anyone on the team. He could go on and on about how much Lance had grown— there was nobody else Keith could ever want as his right hand, nobody else he would trust the team to if something went wrong.

 

He had so many conflicting thoughts and feelings for Lance and it was overwhelming. He'd had those contradicting feelings for awhile but had always been able to ignore them. Now they were dragged to the forefront and laid out in the open for an endless amount of people to look at and speculate about. He didn't like being open with anyone, especially not strangers that he may never see again. And he especially didn't like _these_ being the emotions everyone wanted to see. He'd rather be in the main room with Shiro and Allura, helping plan their route back to Earth. He'd rather be training, or helping Pidge upgrade the weapons system or doing literally _anything_ else. Instead he found himself explaining over and over again that he had joined the Blades of Marmora _for_ Lance and that yes, he had missed Lance while he was gone.

 

He had spent so much time talking about Lance and having everything he said mean so much to so many people that he could no longer stand to be around the other boy. He needed a break. From all of it. Everything.

 

Black came into view and Keith let out a relieved breath. He was in casual clothes, but he didn't care. He just wanted to get out of the castle and clear his head, so he didn't need his armor. Black crouched low, opening his mouth as Keith approached. Keith climbed into him, plopping down in the pilots seat and gripping the controls. Black roared to life around him and a moment later they were dashing towards the entrance of the castle before taking off completely.

 

He knew this wasn't his best decision but Lance was typically his impulse control and he had just pushed Lance as far away as he could. Things had been tense when he initially returned from the blades, but they had settled into their roles relatively quickly and for a little bit of time things had been okay. Or as okay as they could be, given that they were in the middle of an intergalactic war.

 

“Stupid wedding ruined everything.” Keith said bitterly into the emptiness of the cockpit around him.

 

He could feel the essence of Black curling around him and pressing back against him. The expanse of the universe was spread out in front of him, entire galaxies twinkling in the dark as he passed them. The tension was quickly dissipating from his shoulders. He knew that eventually he needed to stop pushing Lance away. Once they left the space mall, he told himself. Once they stopped being bombarded by people every day, he would apologize to Lance and they could go back to how things were.

 

Well, sort of how things were. Because no matter what happened, he and Lance _were_ married and the majority of the universe did know that. So when they were in public, they would have to act married. At least until the war was over. Keith groaned. How had his life gotten so unreasonably complicated?

 

Suddenly Black jerked, throwing Keith back in his seat. He glanced up, zoning back in, only to see an armada of galra ships surrounding him, all firing. Keith cursed, throwing the controls forwards and trying to soar out of their range. The ships were fast and they flanked him, following him anywhere he went. He could feel Black shuddering with each hit, could feel the way he moved slower as the damage was done to his ship.

 

Keith fired back, taking out as many ships as he could, but it was no use. Black was plummeting towards the nearby planet at breakneck speed and Keith barely had a chance to send out an SOS ping before he crashed.

 

\---.---.---.---.---.---.---.

 

Minutes after Keith had left, Shiro had appeared on the bridge, asking Lance what had happened. Lance barely veiled his disdain as he explained that nothing happened because Keith wouldn't talk to him.

 

“In a surprising turn of event, he shut me out and stormed off. He’s always running away.,” Lance bit out a few minutes into his explanation to Shiro.

 

Shiro had been insisting that _he_ had to handle the situation, not Lance, and that Lance needn't worry. Lance had nearly walked out twice but the anger inside of him fueled the argument instead. He was so sick of being pushed away and shut out. They were supposed to be a _team_ , they were supposed to work together. Nobody seemed to care besides Lance and yet somehow, he was the only one constantly getting cut out.

 

“He’s just not great with handling emotions.” Shiro's eyebrows were drawn together in concern.

 

Lance met his gaze head on with a strong glare. “Yeah, well, he’s going to have to learn if he’s going to be our leader. Or our friend. Or really just a decent human in general.”

 

Shiro sighed, swiping a hand down his face. “I know he can be frustrating. Trust me, I know. But, believe it or not, this is his way of caring. He’s trying not to burden you with his problems _because_ he cares about you.”

 

“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” Lance scoffed.

 

Shiro raised an eyebrow at him. “Is it? You’ve certainly done the same thing before.”

 

“I have—” Lance’s response got cut short by a loud alarm blaring through the castle.

 

Simultaneously Lance and Shiro whirled around to look at the holoscreen next to them. The screen was covered in a big notification— an SOS signal it was picking up. Shiro instinctively reached up to tap on it, searching for a location. The doors to the bridge slid open and Allura and Coran came running in, followed closely by Pidge and Hunk.

 

“Where is it coming from?” Allura asked.

 

Shiro looked concerned— incredibly concerned. Lance tried to see the screen over his shoulder. “A planet just a few Varga away. The signal,” Shiro turned around to face everyone, but his eyes locked on Lance, specifically. “is coming from the Black lion.”

 

A collective gasp filled the room but Lance barely heard it. He was already sprinting towards the door, yelling over his shoulder for Coran to upload the location into his lion. His heart was thundering in his ears as he barrelled down the hallways, taking the corners so quickly he nearly toppled over. He was out of breath and panting by the time he reached Red, but he didn’t care. Red opened up for him immediately and Lance jumped in before his jaw even hit the floor.

 

As he dropped into the seat, immediately thrusting his controls forward, he could see the coordinates popping up on his screen. Red seemed to sense his despair and moved at an incredible speed, thundering forward and diving out into space. A minute later Lance could hear everyone’s voice crackling through the com system as they all reached their lions.

 

“Lance, wait for us!” Hunk said.

 

“You can’t go in there alone,” Allura chimed in.

 

Lance considered shutting the coms off.

 

“Lance,” It was Shiro’s voice and even though Lance was mad at him, the steadiness of his voice lifted a little weight off of his chest. “The team can’t lose you, too, got it? You won’t be any help to Keith if you get hurt.”

 

The only thing Lance could do was wonder how this happened. The planet the signal was coming from was _so close_. How had Keith gone and gotten himself into this situation in the time it had taken Lance to argue with Shiro? Why had he let Keith walk away in the first place? A lump formed in his throat.

 

“I’m getting him back, no matter what it takes.” He growled back, his tone firm enough to stop everyone else from arguing with him further.

 

“Just let us catch up to you, Lance, so we can go in together.” Pidge begged. “We’ll be able to save him quicker if we’re all there together.”

 

“If he’s down, time is important.” Red was flying faster than Lance had ever seen him move, putting every ounce of their collective energy into getting to Keith. “I’m not stopping until I get him back.”

 

Nobody responded and Lance didn’t care. He pressed his controls further forward, leaning all of his weight into his arms to prevent them from shaking. His hands hurt with how hard they were gripping the controls but he didn’t care. All he could think about was Keith and how many times he had already almost lost him. He had done more than enough losing Keith and he vowed to himself, if he got Keith back okay, he wasn’t _ever_ going to lose him again.

 

As the screen indicated that Lance had reached the location of the ping, he pulled back on the controls so he could get a look around and let out a gasp.

 

“Uh, guys,” He said through the coms, swerving to his right. “There’s, like, a hundred galra ships here.”

 

“What?!” Hunk yelled in response.

 

Lance dove lower, trying to simultaneously dodge attacks and scan the surface of the nearby planet for Keith. He cursed as a galra ship rose up in front of him, blocking his view. Immediately the mouth blade appeared in Red’s mouth and Lance surged forward, weaving his way through a line of galra ship and leaving a trail of explosions in his wake. His nerves were on edge, adrenaline and fear thrumming through his body at an alarming rate.

 

“We’re almost there, Lance. Can you see him?” Pidge asked.

 

Red and Lance continued to bob through the mass of ships, trying to get as close to the surface of the planet as he could. Finally he reached a gap in ships and could get a clear view of the planet below. Immediately, he could see Black. His heart plummeted to the ground. Black was on his side, in a crater that made it look like he had hit the ground _hard_. His eyes weren’t glowing and he looked completely still.

 

“I see him,” Lance said weakly, immediately diving red down. “I’m going in.”

 

Out of the corner of his eye he could see the others show up finally, diving straight into battle with the ships. He could hear them through the coms, could feel Red trembling as he took shots, but Lance ignored all of it. All he could see was Black and the way he looked so broken on the ground like that.

 

“Come on, Keith, come on. Be okay,” Lance repeated to himself as he landed Red on the ground and dove out. He barely managed to slap the extra helmet on his head before he exited Red.

 

He sprinted across the planet as fast as he could, not even feeling his limbs. As soon as he reached Black, he scrambled up one of his large paws and began to walk precariously along his long leg. Black’s head was tilted back, his mouth slightly open, and it was all the space Lance needed to squeeze inside. He dropped down, taking a half of a second to regain his balance before heading up and into the cockpit.

 

There, slumped over in the seat, was Keith. He looked uninjured, but he wasn’t moving and his body was completely limp. The way he was falling over the armrest of the chair looked unnatural and painful.

 

“Keith!” Lance dove forward. He could still hear the sounds of battle in his ear but he ignored it. He unbuckled Keith and scooped him into his arms, brushing the hair out of his face. Keith’s face looked peaceful, but all it did was set Lance’s nerves on edge.

 

“Lance?” It was Pidge, her voice tense as she fought the glara. “Did you find him? Is he okay?”

 

The panic was no longer concealed. Lance stood from his spot with Keith in his arms, sprinting back towards Red. He could hear the absolute fear in his own voice as he responded. “You guys are going to need to haul Black back. I’m taking Keith to Red. He needs to get back to the ship immediately.”

 

“Is he okay?” Pidge asked again, clearly unnerved by Lance’s response.

 

“I don’t know,” He answered as his feet hit the ground and he took off running, ignoring the added weight of Keith in his arms. “I can’t see him breathing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;))))  
>  
> 
> If you feel the need to yell at me (and I'm sure a lot of you do), you can do so here or find me on [tumblr](http://lookingglassheart1207.tumblr.com/) and let me know what a terrible person I am. I already know how cruel this ending is, but still!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as some of you may or may not know, tomorrow is my birthday. I was striving to update 4 things today so that I could spend my birthday watching everyone react to them, but life got in the way. I did update Lonely In Love already and now this. The other two things I wanted to post are in the works and hopefully being posted tomorrow, but not tonight. 
> 
> So anyways, I hope you guys enjoy! and hopefully I'll be able to provide the rest soon!!

The sounds came in slowly. They were faint at first, slowly growing in volume, but they were always muffled. The next thing he was aware of was a deep ache in his entire body. It felt like every muscle hurt, every breath stung. With more effort than it should take, he forced his eyes open, blinking a few times to try and settle his vision. Instantly, the sound erupted around him. His eyes focused and he found himself looking through the glass door of one of the healing pods at the worried faces of his team.

****

Lance dove forward immediately, pushing every button he could reach until the door was sliding open. He practically climbed into the pod with Keith in his haste to get to the other boy. Keith took a slow, aching step forward, his leg shaking under his weight. The room around him had gone completely silent as they all watched him come out of the pod. He could remember Black crashing to the ground and the impact as he hit and then, well… nothing.

****

His knee suddenly buckled beneath him but Lance was there instantly, gripping his arm and catching his weight. They steadied themselves before Lance slipped Keith’s arm around his shoulder, bearing his weight. Like the rest of his body, Keith’s heart ached.

****

He knew he shouldn’t have run. He knew it was stupid, reckless, foolish, unreasonable… the list could go on and on. The entire team had every right to be upset with him, but Lance had more right than the rest of them. Keith suspected Lance was furious with him— he would be furious if he were in Lance’s shoes. A knot of dread formed into his stomach as he tried not to notice the warmth that was Lance seeping into his side, dulling the ache. 

****

“Hey,” Lance ducked his head so he could meet Keith’s gaze, despite Keith doing his best to avoid Lance’s eyes. “You okay?”

****

Keith looked up, surprised. “I was expecting a scolding.”

****

“Oh, don’t worry, there’s one coming, but Shiro and I are still fighting over which one of us gets to give it to you.” Lance replied cheekily. The rest of the team chuckled in the background. “Really though,” Lance dropped his voice again, “Are you okay? You really worried me.”

****

“I’m fine,” He lied, and he could practically feel Lance flinch away from him. He was anything but fine and he was sure Lance knew that, too. At the very least, it was clear how  _ not fine _ he was physically.

****

He knew why he was still pushing Lance away, after everything. The least he could do was talk to Lance, but the idea made him feel like his throat was closing. The last time they had tried to talk, he had gotten mad, stormed off and ended up in this awkward situation with the rest of the team staring at him, disappointment and worry swirling together. He wasn’t sure how to express himself or how to explain to Lance what was wrong. He wasn’t sure how to broach the subject without it turning into the very thing he was desperately trying to avoid. 

****

The rest of the team stepped forward, talking over each other as they all expressed how glad they were that he was fine. Shiro flanked his opposite side, resting a hand on his shoulder. It was suddenly too much for Keith— everything was too much and he just needed to get out. Pushing Lance away had been hard enough since he came back, but Shiro? His brother? He couldn’t face Shiro because he couldn’t lie to him. And the guilt of worrying him— worrying all of them— with no explanation was almost too much to withstand. 

****

He pulled away from Shiro and took his arm back from Lance and headed towards the door. The only way for him to keep his secret was to stay away from everyone. It was getting harder and harder to do with all the people constantly milling around, joining the coalition and seeking out him and Lance, but he wasn’t about to stop trying. It was only a few steps before his legs gave out again and Lance was instantly there, scooping him back up. The team stepped aside, clearing a path for them.

****

Keith turned his head away stubbornly but let Lance help him get to his room. It appeared to be the  _ only _ way he was going to make it to his room. The walk was long, quiet and awkward. It wasn’t that he had nothing to say, but that he had  _ too much _ to say. He wasn’t sure how to begin, but he knew where it would end and he didn’t want to end up there. He pondered it as the door to his room slid open and Lance hauled him to his bed, dropping him gently onto the mattress.

****

“I know you want to be alone,” Lance said, standing over him. “I’ll do my best to respect that. But first—” he took a steadying breath. Keith looked up at him, no idea what to expect. Lance looked in his direction but didn’t meet his eyes. “I’m sorry. For everything. I was so worried but I shouldn’t have pushed. You have every right to lock me out if you want to. I just—”

****

“Lance,” The name came to him easily and tasted sweet on his tongue. He had always liked Lance’s name and the way it suited him. “It’s not your fault. You can’t possibly blame yourself for this.”

****

In response, Lance blanched. “Yes, I absolutely can.” He replied. “Are you kidding? How is this  _ not _ my fault?”

****

Keith wished Lance would just meet his gaze. He suddenly had the overwhelming urge to lock onto those blue eyes and to make him understand. “This was  _ my _ fault, Lance. You can’t possibly blame anyone but me.”

****

Keith got his wish then and had his breath taken away. The raw emotion— the unadulterated  _ pain _ in Lance’s gaze broke Keith’s heart on the spot. “I can and I will,” he said, his voice low and quivering with emotion. “If I had just given you the space you clearly wanted, you never would’ve run. If I hadn’t said those things, you wouldn’t be like— like— “ Lance gestured vaguely to Keith’s entire body, clearly implying his lack of wellbeing. “ _ God, _ Keith, I just— I want—” 

****

He didn’t realize it at first, but Keith was holding his breath, waiting for the answer. When Lance didn’t continue, he prompted. “You want?”

****

Scrubbing at his face, Lance began pacing a wide circle around Keith’s room. It was a habit that was clearly due to stress, but Keith had never seen Lance act that way before. Lance sighed loudly, running his fingers through his hair, leaving it a tousled mess. Keith couldn’t deny that he liked how it looked. “ _ Now _ you want to talk? It figures. Now I don’t know what to say! I’m afraid to say anything to you at this point. I’ve already caused enough damage.”

****

Silence surrounded the two of them. Keith felt the undeniable urge to run,  _ again _ . He bit back against the fear that was clawing up his throat. There were so many things he wanted to say to Lance. He wished briefly for the courage he’d had at the wedding. He wished, just for a moment, he could feel that ease and that comfort so that it’d allow him to say all the things he needed to say. He cursed himself for getting into this situation in the first place.

****

“You didn’t cause— Lance—” Words had never come easy to Keith, but he wished so desperately that once, just this  _ once _ , they would. “You shouldn’t be apologizing. I—”

****

Lance stopped pacing suddenly and turned to face him with a torn expression. “I’m sorry,” he said again, his eyes lowering. Keith thought crashing Black again would be preferable to the way his heart was slowly tearing itself apart at Lance’s expression. “You need to rest, I’ll leave you alone. Let me know if you need anything.” he sucked in a breath, “Or Shiro, I guess.”

****

Before Keith could say anything else, Lance turned on his heel and headed to the door, clicking the button and walking through the door before it even finished opening. Keith hadn’t been feeling good about anything in relation to Lance for awhile, but this was hands down the worst he had felt. He wanted to explain everything to Lance, to tell him  _ why _ he was being distant, but he knew that it wouldn’t matter.

****

The silence that followed the door shutting was deafening and suffocating simultaneously. He leaned back against the wall behind his bed, his entire body groaning in protest. He welcomed the pain— he  _ deserved _ the pain. He had no right to treat Lance the way he was and he knew it. It had been okay for awhile and then the wedding— the god forsaken, cursed wedding— had crept up on him and swept him away in the moment. He was  _ still _ drunk on the feeling of Lance pressed against him, on the taste of Lance’s smile as they kissed.

****

When he closed his eyes, he could still see Lance standing there in his suit. He remembered every line of the suit, the way it cut such flattering shapes around Lance and made him look more stunning than Keith had ever seen him look. Keith frequently replayed Lance’s vows in his head, shredding his own heart with each word. If only the undertone of love in his words had been real. If only Lance had realized then that he meant every word he’d said. If only...

****

He knew better. He was their disciplined leader, he didn’t get distracted by things like this. And yet, that day, nothing in the entire universe could have torn him away from Lance. They say a wedding is supposed to be the best day of someone’s life and for Keith it was— and it absolutely wasn’t. It had been such a good day and he had felt  _ so _ close to Lance,  _ so  _ open that he had started to let his walls down again. And when he came back to his senses the day after, he was forced to build them back up, hurting both of them in the process. 

****

He could hear muffled voices through the door a moment before they slid open again. He snapped his eyes over to the door hoping to see Lance coming back. He  _ did _ see Lance, but it was his back retreating down the hallway. His heart sunk before he focused on the other figure who was entering his room.

****

“I hear a lot has happened while I’ve been gone.”

****

Keith let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding at the sight of his mom. “Tell me about it.”

****

Krolia smiled down at her son as she crossed the room and came to sit next to him on the bed, “You got married, huh? And you didn’t even invite your own mother to the wedding?”

****

“I didn’t even invite  _ myself _ to the wedding,” Keith could hear the bitterness in his own voice, could feel the way the words sliced his throat as the exited. He cringed slightly. “It’s not like it was a real wedding anyways.”

****

At first, she didn’t say anything. Instead she stroked his hair in the comforting way that only a mother could. Keith couldn’t express how grateful he was to have found his mother, to have all of his questions answered and to finally feel like he belonged somewhere. The two years they had spent together on the whale had really given them the chance to bond and Keith wouldn’t have traded it for anything. Because now, as she gently stroked his hair, he was comfortable leaning into her and letting her comfort him. He was comfortable letting her be his mom.

****

“I’m worried about you,” She hummed quietly into his ear, her hand moving from the top of his head all the way to the small of his back in one soothing motion.  He didn’t say anything. “I ran into Lance in the hallway,” she continued, clearly unsurprised by his silence. “He’s worried about you, too.”

****

_ That _ got a response from Keith. “I know.”

****

“Honey,” Krolia pulled back so she could get an easier view of her son’s face. “Why don’t you talk to him? Just tell him, Keith.”

****

“There’s nothing to tell,” Keith pulled away, stubbornly crossing his arms over his chest. “We just have to learn how to work together again.”

****

“No. You know how to work together, I’ve seen it.” She drew further away and Keith missed her closeness immediately. He didn’t want to be lectured, he wanted to be comforted. But, she was a mom and lecturing came just as naturally to her as comforting. “You need to tell him the _ truth _ , Keith. Don’t deny it, not to me.”

****

Keith let a miserable sigh pass his lips. He knew what Krolia was talking about. She had been decent enough to not push him about it, but he knew she was constantly wondering. He could see the way she would scan between him and Lance, trying to read the undertones of the situation. He had done his best to ignore her probing glances as well as the memory of the vision, but he couldn’t. It haunted him.

****

The time warps in the quantum abyss had showed them various scenarios— most from the past, but a few from the future. Much to Keith’s chagrin, it had showed them a glimpse of  _ his _ future, one that he hated. He could still hear the way his voice cracked as he poured his heart out to Lance, confessing every feeling he had been denying for so long. He could still see the way Lance’s smile fell off his lips, replaced by a slight frown. The scene had gone dark immediately after, but it didn’t matter— the implications were clear and Lance didn’t feel the same way.

****

The only question Krolia had asked was if it had already happened. When Keith said no and that he didn’t want to talk about it, she had dropped it. He had done his best to pretend that it was untrue, that they hadn’t seen it, that it wouldn’t happen. But it was like a ghost, trailing him with every step, whispering in his ear that the day was coming soon. And then— then the universe had decided to play the biggest joke it possibly could and forced them to get married. There he was, married to the man he was in love with and he was unhappy about it.

****

How many people could say that?

****

“Like I said,” Keith turned his head away, trying to hide the way he was clenching his jaw to keep his cool, “Nothing to tell.”

****

Krolia’s hand was back, warm and grounding on his shoulder, “I think you’d be surprised by his feelings.”

****

“Would I?” Keith barked out a bitter laugh, “I’ve already seen his reaction. I know what he feels. Why would I go break my heart willingly?”

****

She sighed, leaning against the wall behind the bed. Keith knew it was hard for her— hard to jump in after  _ years _ of being away. Two years to catch up had given them a lot, but there was simply too much from his past for her to know it  _ all _ . He knew that hurt her in a way that he couldn’t fix. They both knew it was because of her decision to leave— the same decision he had made to leave Lance. The way she was looking at him suggested she was following the same train of thought he was.

****

“You don’t want to wait until it’s too late,” She said softly.

****

Keith bit on the inside of his cheek for a moment, trying to steady himself before he spoke. “It’s already too late.”

****

“There’s more to that moment than just what we saw, Keith.” She ventured slowly. Keith uncrossed his arms and dropped his hands into his lap, fiddling idly with the bottom of his t shirt. He already knew what she was going to say, but he didn’t interrupt her. “You saw just a quick glimpse of his reaction, but you don’t know how it ended. I’m  _ telling you _ , there’s more here than you know.”

****

“No offense,” He didn’t look at her as he spoke, his voice quiet. “But you just recently met him. I don’t think you’re the authority on Lance.”

****

“I may have just met him,” She replied, leaning towards him so their shoulders were pressing together, “But that didn’t stop him from coming to find me, seeking advice about you.”

****

Keith’s head snapped up, his eyes seeking hers. She was smiling softly at him, a knowing smile that suggested she could imagine exactly what emotions were swirling around in the pit of his stomach. “What?”

****

“As soon as I stepped off my ship, he was there.” Her hand reached into his lap, gripping one of his. He wondered briefly how he had gone so many years without the comfort of a mother there. He’d always missed her and wished he had gotten to know her, but it wasn’t until now that he realized what exactly he had been missing. “He told me what happened with Black and the kind of place you were in. He trailed me all the way here. He’s worried sick about you, Keith. I mean, the poor kid looks like a walking ghost.”

****

Another bout of guilt instantly spiked through him.  _ Did _ Lance look like a ghost? He hadn’t noticed. He  _ should _ have noticed, but he didn’t. Nobody ever paid Lance the attention he deserved and now, suddenly, he wasn’t paying attention to him either. It made him sick, disgusted with himself. It had always been his mission to treat Lance the way he deserved. And now? Now they were  _ married _ and Keith was suddenly less attentive, more distant, and just downright nasty to Lance.

****

He sighed, “I’ve really made a mess of this, haven’t I?”

****

“I’m not going to say yes,” She replied, squeezing his hand. He could hear the slight teasing tone in her voice. “But I’m not going to say no, either.”

****

Keith let out a short laugh. He  _ knew _ he needed to tell Lance, but he still didn’t feel like he could. “I’ll apologize to him and…  _ try _ to be around him a little more.”

****

“Keith,” Krolia’s voice wasn’t exactly a warning— more exasperated than anything else. She squeezed his hand again for emphasis.

****

“I can’t,” He said quietly— so quietly he wasn’t sure she would be able to hear him. He almost hoped she couldn’t. He hoped that the room swallowed his words whole, erasing them from existence entirely. “I can’t tell him how I feel.”

****

She used her free hand to brush a piece of his bangs out of his face and leaned forward so she could see his eyes. “What other option is there?” 

****

“I get over him,” Keith hoped with all that he had that his voice sounded steadier and more sure than he felt.

****

Krolia sighed, but it was a fond noise. “You got your stubbornness from your father,” She said quietly. “There was no talking that man out of anything once he had decided on it and you’re exactly the same way.”

****

A small seed of warmth bloomed in his chest. He liked the idea of being like his father— his father was a good man. He could only hope to be half the man his father was. The thought staved off a little of the despair that had been slowly tightening around his heart. He knew his solution wasn’t ideal for many reasons: the entire universe knew of their wedding, a lot of people’s participation in the coalition was dependent upon their marriage and if he was being honest— which he rarely was, not even with himself— he  _ wanted _ to be married to Lance. Of course, he would’ve preferred to do things in the proper order— dating first, then proposal,  _ then _ marriage— but this was his desired endgame regardless.

****

“I’ll be fine, mom.” He said quietly and didn’t notice the way she smiled at his use of ‘mom’. It had been weird, at first, to think of her as his mom. But as time had gone on and she had proved herself to him over and over again, convinced him that she wasn’t going to leave again and that she didn’t ever  _ want _ to leave him in the first place, he had gotten comfortable with the idea. She was a great mom, truth be told. Even after years of them being apart, she knew exactly what he needed and was always in tune with him.

****

“Well,” She patted his knee, “I just got back and I really need to go talk to Allura. I’ll be back later and we can talk some more, okay?” Keith nodded, feeling the knot of dread uncoil slightly in his stomach. He felt, for the briefest of moments, like things might just end up okay. “Just think about what I said, okay? Promise me you’ll think about it.”

****

He sighed, “I promise.”

****

—

****

Pidge and Shiro had been the only two people to stay in the med bay after Keith and Lance had left. Hunk had gone off to cook something for Keith even though Shiro knew that he wouldn’t eat it, and Coran and Allura had gone off to repair some things on the castle. The room had been silent, Pidge sitting on one of the couches, flipping through things on her holoscreen and Shiro had stared, for no particular reason, at the healing pod Keith had come out of.

****

The door to the med bay opened suddenly and both of them turned to see Lance walking in, face flushed and clearly distraught. He looked like he was full of untameable anxious energy that had no outlet.

****

“Lance?” Pidge closed her holoscreen, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “You okay?”

****

Shiro took a few steps closer to Lance. He looked like he was about to snap or crumble or  _ something _ and Shiro felt like he needed to be there for when he finally collapsed. 

****

“Yeah, absolutely. I’m fine. No problem. What could possibly be wrong?” Lance rambled, scrubbing a hand through his hair a little too roughly. “It’s not like my quiznaking  _ husband _ nearly died and refuses to talk to me about it. It’s not like you two spent  _ days _ trying to run interference between us. It’s not like this castle is closing in on me, making it hard to breath. It’s—”

****

“Lance,” Shiro closed the gap between them, grabbing the other boy by the shoulders. “Take a deep breath.”

****

He could see the way Lance’s eyes were unfocused and could practically feel the tension and anxiety rolling off of him. Things must not have gone well with Keith, then. Shiro suppressed a sigh. He knew Keith well, but that wasn’t much help in this circumstance. All his knowledge of Keith gave him was the fact that Keith pulled away like this when he was really overwhelmed with some sort of feeling and trying to deny it, hard. He, unfortunately, couldn’t pinpoint what that feeling was, though. He had no idea what had suddenly gotten Keith so upset, so cleaning up the aftermath of his implosion was hard. He wanted to offer Lance comforting words, but he didn’t have any. 

****

He wasn’t exactly sure how to broach the subject of Keith with Lance. The last time he had tried, Lance had exploded at him. “Feeling better?”

****

“Feeling calmer,” Lance conceded before adding, “Not better.”

****

Pidge stood from her spot on the couch and walked down the stairs to stand with the two guys. For the first time in awhile, Shiro was at a complete loss for what to say. Luckily for him, Pidge seemed to have an idea.

****

“I know you’re not thrilled with either of us right now,” She started, sounding slightly apologetic. Lance didn’t contradict her. “But you must know that we really do want what’s best for Keith. And for you.”

****

“I’m sure you do,” Lance replied, but he didn’t sound genuine. Shiro winced slightly.

****

“What can I do to make you feel better?” Shiro asked, trying to ignore the daggers Lance was glaring at him.

****

Lance, for his part, looked completely unmoved. “Nothing.”

****

“ _ Lance _ .” Pidge reached up and cuffed him gently on the shoulder, “Quit being stubborn. Just because Keith is pushing you away doesn’t mean you get to push  _ us _ away.”

****

A moment passed where Lance looked a little unnerved by Pidge’s statement. Shiro could see him thinking it over. He watched as the tension melted out of Lance’s shoulders slightly and was able to let out a sigh of relief. Shiro wasn’t technically the leader anymore, but everyone still looked to him for guidance and he wanted to be able to provide that. Especially when the actual leader of Voltron was sequestering himself in his room, refusing to talk to or acknowledge anyone else on the team.

****

“Pidge is right, Lance. We’re a team and a family. I understand you’re upset, but we’re just trying to help.” Shiro gave both of Lance’s shoulders a slight squeeze as he spoke. “Why don’t you take some time to yourself? Let us look after him? I know Hunk is cooking something in the kitchen if you want to go join him.”

****

Lance wrinkled his nose, “Not even Hunk can make the food goo appetizing.”

****

Shiro laughed lightly, “No, maybe not. But sitting in there with him has to be better than anxiously pacing the hallway outside Keith’s room, unwilling to either leave or go in.”

****

“I was not—” Lance started.

****

Shiro cut him off with a stern look. “Were you not going to?”

****

Lance flushed a few shades of red and Pidge laughed to herself. “I hadn’t decided yet,” He said defensively.

****

“You go join Hunk and I’ll go talk to Keith,” Pidge offered. “I know Hunk is getting worried about you.”

****

Shiro watched Lance look at Pidge, watched him scan her face as she spoke. He was reminded that they were together at the garrison as a team— Lance, Pidge and Hunk, an unlikely trio that ended up being exactly what the universe needed. He wondered what they had been like before he had met them. He could only imagine the trouble they had gotten into and the havoc they had wrought. They were  _ still _ wrecking havoc everywhere they went and Shiro knew how much they had already grown.

****

“You don’t need to go talk to him,” Lance replied after a moment.

****

“I want to.” Pidge waved a hand in the air casually.

****

“No,” Lance pressed, “You don’t need to. I sent Krolia in there after I left.”

****

“Oh,” Pidge said, seeming to have no idea what else to say.

****

Shiro smiled at both of them. “Why don’t the three of us go join Hunk in the kitchen? You look like you haven’t eaten in a month, Lance. And some company would do you good.”

****

Before he had a chance to say anything else, Shiro flipped him around, releasing one shoulder to reach out and grab Pidge by her shoulder. He steered the two of them out of the med bay and down the hall towards the kitchen. Even before the doors opened, they could hear Hunk bashing pots and pans around. Shiro didn’t fail to notice the way Lance smiled slightly at the sound.

****

Hunk glanced up as the doors opened, smiling at his audience. “Perfect timing,” he said, tossing what appeared to be the alien equivalent of an oven mitt at Lance, “Will you grab the tray out of the oven?”

****

Lance caught the mitt fluidly and headed to the oven without being asked again. Shiro watched on in silence, proud of the way they worked as a team even in everyday situations. Pidge headed to the counter to look over Hunk’s shoulder and see what he was stirring in the pot. The room smelled… weird, but food goo never smelled good so that was to be expected. Slowly chatter started to fill the room and for the first time in a few weeks Shiro felt like things were starting to balance out again.

****

He’d never tell the others this— he was the leader, he couldn’t let them see his weaknesses— but he had been worried, too. After everything that had happened to him and the time he had spent in the consciousness of the Black lion, he felt distant from his team. That was changing the longer he was back and they had been wonderful and accepted him back with no hesitation, but it didn’t change the fact that he felt out of place occasionally. And suddenly Keith was acting strange, Lance was taking it harder than anyone expected and Shiro had no idea what to do.

****

“Hey this actually doesn’t look… completely disgusting,” Lance said as he set the tray down on the counter. “You’re getting better, buddy!”

****

Hunk smiled proudly in response. Shiro knew they were all resilient and that they would get through whatever was happening no matter what. He knew that they would all find their ways back to each other— the universe had chosen them for a reason. They were meant to work together, to make a team, to be a  _ family _ . Still, that didn’t mean that there wouldn’t be cuts, bruises and broken hearts along the way. He just hoped to minimize them as much as possible.

****

“Shiro?” Shiro snapped back to the present to find Pidge standing in front of him, her eyebrow raised. “Do you want a plate or not?”

****

“You know what?” Shiro stepped up to the counter with the others, settling into a spot next to Lance. “That sounds great.”

****

The food was dished out between them, Hunk insisting on setting some aside for Keith whenever he got hungry. Shiro ate his food mostly in silence, watching the three of them seek each other out, find each other and support each other. He watched them guide Lance back from the dark place he had been the past week or so. That was the one thing they had that gave them an edge in this war— each other.


End file.
